Cavern Of A Million Colors
by Eeveebeth Fejvu
Summary: A novel. A magical cave doesn't seem like such a bad place to get trapped in, especially with your best friend. However, when a frightening occurence happens to Ash and Misty, will Brock, May, and Max be able to get them out... alive? AAML
1. Now Until The End Of Time

Hello, my friends, and welcome to my story! This is my third Pokémon fan fiction, and also my third fan fiction period (it's called dedication to your show, folks )! This, however, is my FIRST CHAPTER STORY, so give me a bit of a break on time in between postings of chapters. I'm a busy girl, so be glad I had Spring Break 2004 to write this first, incredibly long chapter! Though the plot synopsis below may not make this story seem novel or unique, I promise that it will be! Anyway, I hope that you will review, 'cause it SO inspires me to, like, keep writing, like, really, really fast. Like, really! (Geesh, I sound like Daisy, Lily, and Violet… ) Thanks a bunch and hope you find my story satisfactory!

Synopsis: This story takes place in Hoenn, but everyone is the age that they are in the show because it's easier to picture them, since they are exactly the same as we all know them. Anyway, the whole group, which includes Ash, Misty, Brock, May, and Max, are journeying to the next town for Ash's sixth gym battle. They stop for the night on Route 119 (you can find all places on an actual Hoenn map). The group decides to play a game, but when they get separated, trouble starts. Ash and Misty unintentionally fall down into a hole, but no one saw where they went. The pair finds themselves in a giant, mystical, labyrinth cavern, which doesn't seem too bad at first. However, when a strange and terrifying event happens, nothing is so fun anymore, and now the clock is ticking! Can Brock, May, and Max ever find and save Ash and Misty… before it's too late! This story's genre includes Romance, Suspense, Drama, Action/Adventure, Mystery, and Fantasy.

Dedication: This story is dedicated to all sincere, 100 "Ash And Misty Go Together" fans, whether you call yourself "pokéshippers", "twerpshippers", or "AAML-shippers" (as I call myself). We know that we are correct in our beliefs, as we are the only shippers, to my knowledge, that have any hard evidence for our shipping whatsoever. AAML-ers, don't give up on Misty and turn to Advancedshipping! There will ALWAYS be pokéshippers out there, so believe! AAML 4-ever!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, Ash, Misty, Brock, Tracey, May, Max, Pikachu, any of the cities, any of the characters, any of the attacks, any episodes, or anything like that. I own the plot, though, so please don't steal it. I worked hard to come up with it! (Really, I did.) Thanks again!

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**CAVERN OF A MILLION COLORS**

**by Eeveebeth Fejvu**

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**CHAPTER 1: …From Now Until The End Of Time…**

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Ash Ketchum hadn't been this happy for a long time. Everything was now just perfect in his life. Well, as perfect as it could be while still not being the greatest Pokémon Master. Yet. Besides that, everything was just right and that made Ash very, very happy. He was on his way to the next gym in Fortree City, where he would battle to earn his sixth badge for the Hoenn league. He was fresh off of his last gym victory in Lavaridge Town, against gym leader Flannery's Fire type Pokémon, and was eager to snag another win. 

Flannery had been easy to defeat, Ash considered, but really only because of _her_ help. Well, being a Water Pokémon trainer, she did know all of the ways to defeat Fire types, and they all worked, too. That's right. Misty had come back. Misty. Misty Waterflower. His best and closest friend, though he had never ever told her that she was, because Brock would probably make some big fuss about it. Misty. Ash hadn't thought he would ever see her again, after her sisters made her go back to their gym in Cerulean City and run it while they were away on a cruise. For the first time since they had met, they had parted ways and, after a good month or so of her absence, Ash had really started to feel the effects of her missing presence. Sure, he now had May White and her brother, Max, to travel with. Sure, Brock Slate, Ash's second best friend, had come back and was traveling with him, too. Sure, Pikachu had never once left him alone. Still, traveling on his journey without Misty just never felt right. After all, he had never traveled a whole day in his life without her by his side.

Ash had found that walking from sunrise to sunset was very monotonous when you didn't have anyone to argue or quarrel with. So after a few months, only three gym badges, and only three newly-captured Hoenn Pokémon, Ash had sunk into a kind of deep depression in which he only contemplated where he would be now if Misty had never left. During his depression period, he had noticed Brock somewhat egging May on to get in a dispute over something with Ash. Ash never fought back, though, and just gave in immediately. Ash wondered if Brock was doing this for his own entertainment, since he had mostly seemed to enjoy Ash and Misty's little squabbles, or if he even knew that he was doing it. He also figured that Brock might be egging her on so that Ash would forget about Misty, that is, if Brock thought that missing Misty (hey, it rhymed) was Ash's problem. This made Ash rather sick. It was like May was a replacement for Misty! It reminded Ash of when Brock had stayed with Professor Ivy when he was traveling in the Orange Islands. Tracey Sketchit had seemed to fill Brock's position while he was gone. Well, no matter how Brock tried, Ash surmised, no one could fill Misty's missing place. May White was definitely no Misty Waterflower and never could be, and only Misty could fill Misty's place. So in Ash's mind, there was still a vacancy in the "best female friend and arguing partner" position in his group.

Ash's depression had gotten worse. Neither May nor Max had any idea why Ash was so melancholy, and Ash figured that Brock only had a small idea as to the problem. Brock probably thought that Ash was just disappointed for not catching a lot of Hoenn Pokémon or something. People never really understood that Pokémon weren't the only things that Ash ever thought of. Sometimes, Ash had gotten so upset that he wished that all three of them would leave him so that he didn't have to miss only Misty. He had even went so far as to buy May a Mach Bike when they were in Mauville City, to replace the one that Pikachu had damaged on his first day in Hoenn. He had kind of hoped that May would leave, but she didn't, and Ash had to endure strange stares from Brock, which he absolutely knew meant "why-did-you-buy-May-a-bike-and-never-replace-Misty's-one-that-you-broke?" No wonder May or Max had no idea why Ash was so down; neither he nor Brock had ever mentioned Misty in their conversations, so they probably didn't know that she even existed.

Then, one overcast and cloudy day, it had all changed. After a particularly nasty battle with Team Rocket, Pikachu had been poisoned badly by Jesse's Seviper's Poison Tail attack. He had rushed Pikachu to the nearest Pokémon Center, only to find that the Nurse Joy there was out of Antidote. Brock had raced off to the nearest Poké Mart to see if they had any Antidote there, while Ash, May, and Max waited outside the Center. Finally, Ash couldn't wait any longer. He ran over to the bike rack they were next to and chose the first bike he found that had a basket on the front. Placing Pikachu in the basket, he wheeled the bike off the rack and took off down the road, leaving May and Max behind. Max's PokéNav had shown that there was another Pokémon Center a few miles out of town and Ash knew that it was probably Pikachu's only hope. As he raced down the dirt path, all Ash could feel was this great sense of irony. A badly hurt Pikachu… a "borrowed" bike… a race to the nearest Pokémon Center… all alone… Ash had done this before, like a bad case of déjà vu. Even the bicycle he had snatched, it seemed… so familiar.

As he had sped down the road, Ash had no idea what was going on back at the Pokémon Center where he had left May and Max. Only after the event had he found out what had happened. While May and Max had been standing by the bike rack, waiting for Brock to show up, they watched a girl come out of the Pokémon Center and head towards them. She had short orange hair pulled up in a sideways ponytail and was carrying a strange looking egg Pokémon. When she had gotten over to them, they saw her pause, stare at the empty bike slot, and get a strange look on her face.

"Have you seen my bike?" she turned to them and asked, rather vaguely and distractedly, and gestured to the empty bike slot.

"Well," May spoke up, embarrassed, "My friend just took it, uh, borrowed it, I think."

"His Pokémon is badly hurt, and he needs to get it to the next Pokémon Center right away," Max piped up.

"He'll bring it back, I'm sure," May muttered, thinking of her own Mach bike that she had managed to stuff into her bag (it was one of those collapsible ones) and wondering why she hadn't let Ash use it. Oh yeah, it didn't have a basket.

May and Max watched the girl set her Pokémon on the ground beside her. She started to stare at the empty rack and looked almost on the verge of tears, like she was remembering something. May hoped that she wasn't upset because she was attached to her bike, for who knew what would happen to it in Ash's possession? Then the girl put her head in her hands for a moment or two, like she was trying to block her memory, if that was what it was. Suddenly, she jerked her head up and they saw that her face was now angry.

"Which way did your friend go?" she snarled.

"That way," May pointed down the road. Sweeping her Pokémon into her arms, the girl took off down the road in a rush. She started shouting illogically about something as she ran out of sight, but to May's surprise, she clearly heard the words 'Pikachu', 'bike', 'again', and most unexpected of all, 'Ash Ketchum'.

May and Max stood there for a moment. Then they turned to each other. "Did I hear wrong or did that girl just say 'Ash Ketchum'?" Max asked his sister.

May didn't reply for a moment, then answered, "I thought that's what she said."

"But how on Earth would she know it was Ash that took her bike?"

"I don't think she did," May responded, looking down the road that both Ash and the mysterious girl had disappeared, "but how does she know Ash? It has to be OUR Ash Ketchum, because she was yelling about Pikachu, too." After a pause, she turned back to her bewildered brother. "I'm going to follow them. Stay here until Brock comes back, so he knows where we went." With that, May sprinted off down the road, forgetting once again that she now had a bike. Max sighed and leaned against the bike rack, waiting for Brock to return. Even if Brock came back with Antidote, it wouldn't help now.

Ash, meanwhile, pedaled harder and harder down the bumpy dirt path. Pikachu was breathing very laboriously now and Ash was getting more worried by the second. The wooded area he had been cycling in fell behind him, and, as far as the eye could see, there was only open field. The dreary sky turned blacker and suddenly, it began to rain, mercilessly downpouring and soaking Ash totally through in less than thirty seconds. The déjà vu feeling Ash had intensified a hundred fold.

"Well, Pikachu," Ash gasped out through the driving rain to his injured pal in the basket, "At least… at least there aren't… any Spearow… this… time…"

Suddenly, he heard cackling behind him and he caught his breath. _Not now,_ Ash thought, horrified.

"Ha, ha! Prepare for trouble, in the pouring rain!"

"Yes, and make that double, so don't complain!"

"WELL, I CAN COMPLAIN, CAN'T I? Cut the motto, the twerp's already heard it once today and I'm getting soaked! Meowth! I hate this dumb weather!"

"Shut up, Meowth! Don't you DARE interrupt our motto again, furball. The Main Twerp does that enough as it is!"

"I did say to not complain, didn't I, Jess? Though it is rather damp out here."

"How come Jimmy gets to complain, and I don't?"

"You shut up, too, James. I said 'be quiet', Meowth! I can't stand it when you all whine so much!"

"Team Rocket!" Ash cried out, and glanced over his shoulder at his three personal stalkers, Jesse, James, and Meowth, in their Meowth-head balloon. They had steered the hot-air balloon so that it was only a few feet off the ground and so that it was closely giving chase to the boy on the bicycle. Ash's chocolate brown eyes shot daggers at his loathed enemies, but suddenly, the bicycle hit a pothole in the dirt road. Ash jerked his head back to the road just in time to be thrown forward off the bike, face-first, into the muddy lane. He felt something hard and heavy hit his back, knocking all air completely out of him, and a second later, he realized that it was the bars of the bicycle. He felt paralyzed, completely unable to move, what with the crash, the bike crushing his back, and the driving rain. However, Ash's mind compelled him to look up, so with the last of his reserved energy, he forced his face out of the mud and surveyed Pikachu. The little injured electric mouse was basically motionless, and for a moment, Ash's heart stopped, until he saw Pikachu breathe in a deep, shuttering breath.

"Lookie here, James! Look what we finally caught! The precious little yellow rat," Ash murkily heard Jesse proclaim.

"Oooo, goodie! Hey, is that twerp all right? Hey, Twerp! You okay?"

"Shut up, James! It doesn't matter if the twerp's okay. Besides, being the Twerp, he doesn't die. You know that. Now go out there and get Pikachu."

"But Jesse! I'll get my boots all muddy!"

"That's why you wear boots, idiot! Now go get that Pikachu!"

"Fine, fine, I'm going! Hey, Jess, what's that behind us?"

"What do you mean, 'what's behind us'? Hey, looks like a kid running towards us."

"Well, its only one little kid. Hurry up, James, and get that Pikachu so we's can get outta this downpour!"

"Hey, Meowth, Jesse, you know who that kid kinda looks like? It kinda looks like the red-headed twerp that-"

"Go! Psyduck!" _That voice,_ Ash thought blurrily, _that voice is so familiar… so very familiar…_

"Psy! Ay! Ay!"

"Psyduck! Use your Disable attack on Team Rocket!"

"Hey, James, you're right! It IS the- AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Ash heard the muffled pound of footsteps on the mucky road. He felt the dead weight of the bicycle being lifted off of his body. Then, he felt a hand on his shoulder, turning him onto his back. As Ash turned over, he struggled to open his eyes against the torrent. He had to shut his eyes quick, but he thought, almost hoped, that he caught a glimpse of soft orange hair. Then he heard the voice again. The voice was calling his name. "Ash! Ash! Wake up! Ash!" _That voice…her voice… it's her…it can't be…please, please be you…please…be-_

"Mist…?" Ash muttered, in a garbled voice, questioningly. He couldn't get anything else out.

He felt a soft hand wiping his face free of muck as another hand pulled him into a sitting position. "Yes, Ash, it's me. It's me. Misty."

"Misty?" _No…really…it can't be you…this is Brock making some sort of sick, dumb joke…really…is it really you…nah, I'm just dreaming…you're…back in Kanto…are you really here, Misty…my best friend…that I've missed…so very…much…is it…is it you…_

"Yeah, Misty." Ash finally believed. Misty was here, really here. "Now Ash, are you okay?" Ash could still hear Team Rocket screaming, and though his head was whirling, and he still could barely believe that Misty was right there holding him up, the back of his mind was thinking about how Psyduck must have learned to use its psychic abilities (without having to get a huge headache) while she was gone. Then, he thought about-

"Pika…chu… poisoned… very… help… please…Mist…"

"Okay, I'm going to get Pikachu." He still hadn't completely seen her, but he felt her crawl away from him. A moment or two later, he felt her grab his arm, trying to drag him into a standing position. He struggled to get up, but finally, he managed to place both of his feet firmly on the un-firm ground. Weakly, he tried to wipe his face clear of water. It didn't work, but Ash forced his eyes to unfasten, and there came a fuzzy, distorted image into his brain. The bike was sitting back up, leaning on the kickstand, and Pikachu was lying, curled up, in the basket, along with a small familiar egg Pokémon wrapped in a blanket. He looked to the left, and saw… her. She looked just exactly like she did when she left, wearing the same clothes and everything. _A…a misty…a misty image of Misty… _Ash could have laughed at his own dumb thought, but his body knew that this was no time for laughter. His body did, however, wobble and he caught sight of her hastening to help him stand up. He felt her hand on his saturated back, pushing him towards the bike.

"Okay, let's go get Pikachu some help, and you some help, too. You were taking him to the next Pokémon Center, right? Because they didn't have any Antidote at the last Center?"

"Hmmm…"

"All right. We're only about a half a mile away, so if we hurry, we can get there… in about ten minutes. Now, here," he saw her straddle the bicycle seat, and hold out a hand to him, "Get on the back and I'll get us out of here." As if in a dream, which Ash still wasn't sure he was not in, he reached out for her hand and grabbed it. She pulled him to the bike and he toiled to climb on behind her. Dazed, Ash turned his head to look at Team Rocket. They had finally stopped screaming, and were slumped over the edge of their grounded basket, unconscious and waterlogged. "Psyduck, return!" She held out a Pokéball and Ash caught a glimpse of the familiar yellow duck before it disappeared in its spherical enclosure. "Good job, too," she whispered to the Pokémon in the Pokéball, and put it away.

"Toge-bri!" Ash heard the call of the little egg Pokémon, Togepi. She sat, cuddled in a blanket, in the basket with Pikachu, calling to her unconscious long-lost friend.

"Don't worry, Togepi," Her voice came again, very gently, "Pikachu's going to be okay. Hold on, Ash, and I'll get us out of here." His eyesight still obscure, he felt the kickstand being kicked up and he blindly reached out for her. His arms ended up hugging her around the middle and, forgetting himself, he pulled himself close to her, to hold on so that they could leave for the Pokémon Center and also to hug her at their reunion. His body was so exhausted and in pain that he ended up leaning heavily on her back, with his chin resting on her right shoulder. The spray of rain in his eyes went away, and through clear vision, he saw her turn her head slightly and look at him with one, ocean-tinted eye. It was impossible to read her thoughts, but he could see emotion in her eyes. She smiled warmly at him and whispered back the message he had sent her with his own eyes. "I'm very glad to see you, too, Ash." He smiled. Misty. She. Was. Back.

Ash lifted his feet from the ground and Misty kicked off and began pedaling. The constant torture of the wind-driving rain and the grimy road kept the bike from gaining much speed at first, but soon, Misty was pedaling with great intensity and they gained momentum, covering much ground. Embracing Misty tightly, Ash gazed at his electric pal. "Hang on, Pikachu. Just hold on and you'll be all right. Don't let a little poison get ya down, buddy. Just hang in there. We'll be there soon."

May stood still, becoming completely drenched and looking rather pathetic, in the middle of the road, looking at the middle of the road. She heard two pairs of footsteps hammering the sloshy path behind her, coming closer. She could hear a voice, explaining the story in between breaths.

"… And so then…the girl… she just… ran… off… shouting about… stuff… and… we… think she said… something… about… Ash… maybe…"

"… She… what…?"

"… Yeah…"

"… WAIT A SECOND! … Max! What did… she… look… like-"

"May!" She didn't turn around, but let her brother come to a stop beside her before looking down at him. He wiped his glasses with the back of his right arm, but it didn't help. "Why… did you… stop here? … Where's Ash… or the girl?"

Brock came panting up on her other, left side. "May! What did this… girl look… like? … May? …What's the matter?"

"Look." She pointed to the strange patterns in the mud. The line of a bicycle track snaking though the grime had stopped and was replaced by a huge messy imprint that was indistinguishable. A pair of shoe tracks also stopped when it came upon the imprint. The single bicycle track appeared again on the other side of the imprint and continued on down the road and out of sight, but the shoe tracks disappeared. "Look over there, too." She turned and pointed directly behind them. The two boys looked. Besides their own three shoe tracks, there was a giant square indentation in the mud, indicating a rather large object had been there recently, but was obviously not there now. The three looked at each other in confusion.

Brock shrugged. "We should keep going. We need to catch up with Ash. This rain is getting worse." There was a loud resounding thunder, which made them all flinch and made Max jump. "This is no heavy shower anymore. This is a thunderstorm, and a really bad one at that. Let's go." They set off following the bike track at a run, May looking back over her shoulder at the imprints in the mud.

The sky cut loose another crack of lightning and rumble of thunder. Ash shivered slightly. Covered almost from head to toe in mud and completely drenched, his brain almost couldn't process what was going on. Misty had only been soaked in rain before, but now her back, arms, and stomach were covered in mud from where Ash was leaning deeply onto her for support. Her feet turned the pedals to the bicycle madly, but now automatically, for Ash could almost feel waves of exhaustion coming from her. She was now gasping for breath almost as bad as Pikachu was. Pikachu was sitting up in the basket now, despite all of its pain from the still-seeping poison, and was hugging the blanket-covered Togepi tightly to it. Pikachu was very, very fond of Togepi. Their hug reminded Ash of how he was hugging Misty at the moment, and he felt himself becoming self-conscious. She was breathing hard, so maybe he was holding onto her too tight, he figured, and so he slackened off his grip and took his chin off of her shoulder. At that exact moment, however, they turned a corner and Ash, almost falling off, resumed his former position. _I… can't believe…I… took… her… bike…again…should have… known… it was… hers…_

"Misty, why… I mean…?"

After a pause, "Yes?" Ash couldn't help grinning a little, but he wasn't sure if she noticed.

"Well, I mean… you have your bike again… so why?" _Please… say it's because I'm your… best friend… please…_

"Well… I… There it is!" Misty cried excitedly and nodded towards something up ahead. Ash looked. The Pokémon Center was there. Right smack dab next to the highway in the middle of an open plain. It was still far away, but it was in sight. Ash's heart jumped in happiness. _We're going to make it, _he thought, when suddenly, for the third time that day-

"Errr, these twerps are SO getting on my nerves! All right, for the final time! PREPARE FOR TROUBLE!"

"And… make it double… geesh, I'm tired."

"I'VE SAID IT BEFORE, AND I'LL SAY IT AGAIN! CUT THE MOTTO AND JUST GRAB PIKACHU!"

"You know… when we say… the motto… we DO lose the… element… of surprise…"

"Shut up, both of you, and don't make ME say it again! Here, Twerp, give us Pikachu, or else!" Ash jerked his head around again to find Team Rocket and their drenched balloon tailing the bicycle down the road.

"GO AWAY, Team Rocket! You guys have cause enough trouble today!" Ash shouted with intense hatred at them.

"You'd think," Misty added stridently, her voice dripping with odium, "that they would have learned by now that THEY'LL NEVER CATCH PIKACHU!"

"Hey, Jess, I was right! It IS the red-headed twerp! She came back!" James cried out excitedly at his correct presumption.

"Hey, Twerp!" Jesse called out mockingly to Ash. Her spirits and confidence were high as the chance of actually capturing Pikachu grew. "Why'd your GIRLFRIEND come back, TWERP? I thought you DUMPED that freak!"

_Not this again, _Ash thought desperately. "She's NOT my girl-" he started to reply, but something else caught his attention, as he saw Pikachu setting Togepi to the side of the basket and shooting a look of pure detestation at Team Rocket. "Pikachu? What are you-"

"Pi…" Pikachu's cheeks began to spark dangerously. Ash's eyes grew wide. He glanced up for a second. They were almost to the Center. "…Ka…" Pikachu scrunched up, charging up its body.

"No Pikachu!" Both Ash and Misty cried out at the same time, trying to prevent the mistake. Too late.

"…CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu then let loose a Thunderbolt attack more powerful, more terrifying, more petrifying, than any electric attack that Ash had ever seen Pikachu, any Pokémon, or the sky, create in his whole life. The attack was so strong and formidable, that the sound of thunder accompanied the lightning! Team Rocket cried out as one in horrible agony, as they were shocked by the lightning. The high-powered volts were doubled in intensity because of Jesse, James, and Meowth's saturated state.

Pikachu's attack didn't hit only its target. Ash couldn't help his scream of torment as the Thunderbolt entered his own body, via Misty, who had received the attack's power even before he had. She screamed out in severe pain, too, and their voices, along with Team Rocket's, created a momentary chorus of horrifying, deadly shrieks. Ash and Misty's waterlogged bodies gave the electricity freedom to consume their entire bodies, and it took advantage of its own good fortune. The voltage also took full advantage of Misty's bicycle. The metal bars carried electricity right down to the spokes. For six paralyzed seconds in time, the electricity of Pikachu's Thunderbolt coursed its way sneeringly through Team Rocket, Ash, and Misty. Then, when the balloon couldn't take any more injury, it exploded upward and outward in a most terrifying explosion, sending Team Rocket flying though the sky without a chance to call out their 'blasting off again' valediction. The bicycle hadn't stopped moving the entire time and Ash felt his entire body, along with Misty's, lurch forward again towards the ground, in a third case of déjà vu. There was absolutely nothing Ash could do to save himself, Misty, or Pikachu and Togepi (who were both currently out of his range of vision), and this was one of the worst feelings that he had ever had, this feeling of complete helplessness. The bike's handlebars smashed with a sickening crunch into the road, snapping off the basket, and sending Ash and Misty to meet the road. Misty hit first. A split second later, Ash hit, too, landing in a heap almost on top of her. His head jerked to the side just enough to see the back wheel of the bicycle flying in a straight path for his head. He barely felt it hit him. His whole world went black.

Ash had woken up later to find himself in a white-sheeted hospital bed in a dark room. His brain was hazy and he was confused about his surroundings. He couldn't remember how he had gotten to where he was. _Pikachu… poisoned… bike… rain… Team Rocket… mud… rain… bike… OH MY GOSH! Misty! Misty!_ Ash jerked his body into a sitting position, and immediately regretted it, for the back of his head had begun to throb painfully. Against the pain, he glanced around. He concluded that he was at the Pokémon Center that had been only a short distance away when he had blacked out. There, under a window which exposed a night sky full of stars, was a couch, and on that couch sat Brock, Max, and May. May was asleep leaning against one arm of the couch and Max was napping leaning against his sister. Brock was sitting with his head in his hands, but he looked asleep also. Ash looked to his right, and his heart jumped. There was another hospital bed beside his, and in the darkness, he could just make out a mop of bright orange hair sticking out of the covers. Misty. She was asleep, too. At least, Ash hoped she was, and he held his breath until he saw the sheet rise up and down with her breathing. Then he sighed and gazed over at her. He simply watched over her for a few minutes, his gaze never faltering, and let a sense of contentment wash over him as he rejoiced silently at her return. _Ah, Misty, I'm so glad you came back when you did. Team Rocket probably would have gotten away with Pikachu for once if you hadn't come just in time… Why ARE you here, Misty? Did… did you really come back… to… travel with me, I mean, us, again? I hope so, 'cause I missed you so much. I didn't know how much I would miss you, and I've been doing terrible without you here to set me straight on stuff. _

Ash wondered where Pikachu was, and hoped that he was feeling okay. The pain in his head had thankfully let up, and Ash had just decided to try to get out of the bed, when he heard a rustle. He looked over to see Brock waking up. Ash shot a grin at Brock and as soon as he saw Ash alive and awake, Brock grinned back. He got up and came over to Ash's bed.

"Hey, Ash. You feeling okay?" he whispered.

"Yup, I'm fine."

"Good. Everyone's been worried about you. You were unconscious the rest of the day, all night, and all of today."

"Really? Wow! I didn't know that I'd been asleep so long!"

"Well, Pikachu's Thunderbolt was really damaging, with all of the rain and storm and everything. May, Max, and I were following you on foot, 'cause May forgot about her bike again, and we had just turned a corner when we saw this humongous explosion. We saw Team Rocket and their balloon go blasting off, so we rushed over to see what happened. By the time we got to you, the Nurse Joy here and her Chansey were already carting you two and the Pokémon inside."

"Please, don't tell me you were slobbering all over that poor Nurse Joy."

"Well, I'll have you know that I resisted for once, because this was an emergency."

Ash laughed at Brock's irritated, yet playful tone. He suddenly realized that Brock had referred to Misty when explaining about what happened. "Misty!" he cried out excitedly and a little too loud. He lowered his voice a fraction. "She's back, Brock! Misty's back! She's really back! And…" He watched Brock trying his best to stop laughing at his friend by covering his mouth tightly with his hand. "What?" Brock just started laughing more. Ash realized that he may have sounded a little bit too enthusiastic about Misty returning, and his face flushed simply the tiniest bit, resulting in Brock crying out hysterically into his hand.

"Hey," Ash growled, "Cut it out."

"I knew it!" Brock managed to gasp out, "I KNEW that was the problem! I just KNEW that's why you've been sulking the whole time!"

"Huh?"

"You were missing Misty the whole time, and I KNEW IT! You were, weren't you?" For once in his life, Ash recognized what Brock was referring to.

"Hey! I said cut it out! I mean, you missed her too."

"Not like you did! Boy, I hope she came back to travel with us, for your sake." Brock snickered, but Ash didn't reply. _I… I think she said that she was, but… she never said why._

Ash heard a rustle and a slight sigh from the other bed. He whipped around quickly to look at Misty, resulting in frenzied tittering from Brock. Misty slowly sat up and shook her head. Her ponytail had been taken down while she was asleep, and her short hair rustled softly. Ash had always found her very striking with her hair down, but had never told her that. She finally looked up and saw Ash sitting up too, grinning happily at her like an idiot, he was so glad to see her. She automatically grinned just as ignorantly back at him, and they looked at each other in the eyes, something they hadn't done too many times before.

"Hey, Misty Waterflower."

"Hey, Ash Ketchum. Long time, no see."

The next morning, Nurse Joy had brought Ash and Misty's Pokémon to them in the room. Pikachu had been completely cured of poison and was at one hundred percent health. Pikachu, however, was miserable and had been moaning the whole time over his mistake that had brutally injured Ash and Misty. He cheered up when they both easily forgave him, and spent the rest of the morning divided between sitting on both of their beds. He looked almost as glad to see Misty as Ash was, and also spent a lot of time playing with Togepi, who had miraculously escaped all damage from the Thunderbolt, as she had been wrapped up in the blanket.

May and Max were introduced to Misty that morning, too. Max was very happy to meet Misty, especially when he heard that she was a Water Pokémon trainer and a gym leader, both equaling a good teacher of Pokémon. Max would do anything for a Pokémon teacher. Misty seemed to enjoy the fact the Max looked up to her already, since she had always been looked down on by her sisters and many others. May seemed happy enough to meet Misty, perhaps sensing a possible shopping partner, as they were both girls. Misty, Ash noticed, had a slightly pained look on her face as she shook May's hand. Misty seemed rather uneasy and possibly mistrustful towards May, but Ash had no clue why this could be.

After lunch, Nurse Joy (whom Brock had resumed fawning over) gave Ash and Misty permission to leave whenever they were ready. Both immediately jumped out of bed, as they had been feeling perfectly fine the whole morning. For the whole group, clothes were put on, bags were repacked, Pokémon healed, and soon everyone was ready to go (except Brock, who wanted to stay with Nurse Joy, but was pulled off of her by Misty tugging his ear, which brought chuckles of remembrance to Ash, Brock, and Misty and confusion to May and Max). As Pikachu resumed his position on Ash's shoulder. Ash couldn't help feeling a bit apprehensive. No one had mentioned Misty's rejoining the group or not since last night. _What if Misty doesn't want to come with us? Oh, gosh, please come with us, Mist, and don't make me miss you again. I don't know if I could stand being away from my best friend again._

The five walked outside, and Ash, Brock, May, and Max looked over at Misty, silently awaiting her decision. She just stood there holding Togepi, not looking at them, silent. No one moved or said a word and everyone was uncomfortable. Finally, Ash absolutely couldn't take the dragging suspense any longer.

"So, Misty," he dragged out slowly and looked away from her, shifting his weight from one foot to the other nervously, "Um, do you, er, are you, um, going to… to come with us? Or…" Ash drifted off, looking back at her, and awaited her reply.

She sighed, and finally, Misty looked up at him. She opened her mouth to speak, but Ash saw her suddenly look past him. Her eyes grew wide. Everyone turned around to see what she was staring at. _No. Oh. No._ Her bicycle lay on the edge of the road still, for no one had bothered to fool with it yet. It was now simply a charred piece of twisted metal and rubber, finished off, once again, by electricity. _I hate déjà vu, _Ash cursed inwardly, _I hate it, I hate it, I hate it!_ Ash heard a thumping noise and turned slowly around to see Misty tapping her foot on the road in impatience. She had that look in her eye that Ash knew too well, that evil look that meant that he was in deep trouble. Ash could hear Brock start to chuckle again. Misty continued to glare at him, though the rest of her face was indifferent. Ash felt his cheeks redden. Now everyone was staring at him. Pikachu had abandoned Ash's shoulder, leaving Ash completely alone.

"Well?" Misty snapped fiercely, still tapping her foot.

"…Um…well…" Ash said meekly. His body had tensed up.

"Better make a run for it, man," he heard Brock whisper. Ash immediately took his advice and bolted off down the road at his top speed, which Misty had still been known to catch him at. He heard a pounding of feet immediately start chasing after him.

"COME BACK HERE, ASH KETCHUM! DON'T YOU DARE THINK THAT YOU CAN GET AWAY WITH THIS THIS TIME, CAUSE YOU WON'T! DON'T THINK THAT I'LL STOP FOLLOWING YOU UNTIL YOU PAY ME BACK FOR MY BIKE! GET BACK HERE, KETCHUM!"

Ash looked back over his shoulder. Here she came, chasing after him. _Why always déjà vu? Why? _"WHAT, YOU THINK I'M DUMB ENOUGH TO JUST STOP AND SUFFER YOUR PATHETIC WRATH? WELL, I'M NOT!"

"I'LL CATCH YOU SOME DAY! YOU WILL PAY ME BACK FOR MY BIKE, OR I'LL FOLLOW YOU FOREVER!" _That decides it, _Ash thought, _you just sealed your own fate, Misty. I'll never, ever pay you back, 'cause I'm never going to lose you, my best companion, again._ Ash laughed aloud just to annoy Misty further.

"Ha, ha, ha! Hey, Ash, Misty, wait up for me, you guys!"

"Pika Pi! Pikachupi! Pikachu!"

"Come on, May! Hurry up! They're getting away!"

"I'm coming, Max, I'm coming! Hey, Brock! Did I miss something or did they always used to do this?"

"You have no idea, May. You have no idea."

Ash had been depressed no more. Misty was back, and she easily refilled her position of "best female friend and arguing partner". They argued pettily for the first few days, but Ash didn't mind. He constantly irked her and provoked her to, wanting to make up for lost months of time, and she seemed to want to do the same. After awhile, though, they went back to their old routine of only four to five arguments a day, and it was good.

As they traveled onward to the next gym, everyone settled into their positions. Max seemed to always be hanging around Misty, hoping she would talk to him about water Pokémon, since that element type was one that he was least knowledgeable on. She would usually comply, and Ash saw that she really enjoyed someone looking up to her. He looked up to her, too, for her ability to recognize what Pokémon had the advantage in battle over another, but he would rather do anything than tell her that. Brock hung out with Misty like they always had. Ash actually talked to her more, rather than argue so much, and began to realize why she had always been his best friend. Whenever he entered a double battle against two opponents, Ash always chose Misty to be his partner, and they and their Pokémon worked well together. Ash was surprised to find, however, that May and Misty didn't get along as well as he had thought they would. Both being girls, he remembered (though he had sometimes used to forget that Misty was a girl, because of the way she acted), he had expected them to become great buddies or something. They weren't. He would sometimes catch them slightly glaring at each other. Other than that, they ignored each other almost completely.

Team Rocket, who eventually returned to their own stalking schedule even after the Thunderbolt, resolved to take advantage of Misty's return and screech out about how she was Ash's girlfriend every chance they got. They both always denied it, but as they yelled their infuriated responses at the exact same time and in the exact same words, Jesse, James, and Meowth just cracked up with uncontrollable laughter before they were sent flying by Pikachu. They finally quit their teasing after Ash and Misty stopped responding and let Pikachu reply, via Thundershock, for them. Ash felt extremely lucky that no one in the group of five said anything about his relationship with Misty being anything other than friends. After his late-night conversation with Brock, Ash noticed Brock closely watching him and grinning every time he talked to (or yelled at) Misty, and this made Ash nervous. May seemed to pout a little bit whenever Ash paid attention to Misty. May had always sort of pouted a lot, even before Misty came, so Ash didn't really give it a second thought. Max didn't seem to think anything. Pikachu didn't bother Ash about it either, but Pikachu was still too excited at Togepi's return to notice anyway. Misty didn't seem to have anything to say on the matter either, and Ash definitely didn't.

At the next gym, Ash had an easy time winning a badge, probably because of Misty screaming at him from the sidelines about his lack of strategy. However, Ash's Taillow, his first captured Pokémon of Hoenn region, was injured pretty badly and even though he recovered well, his left wing was left a little bit lame. As much as he hated it, Ash didn't want to use Taillow to battle again, because he didn't want Taillow's wing to have a chance of becoming broken. Also, Ash didn't want to let Taillow go free, because it might be picked on by other, faster Taillow, and might not be able to catch something to eat. Ash felt distraught and stuck, until he decided, at the next town, to ask Professor Oak.

When they got there, Ash called, but Tracey answered instead. Ash went ahead and told Tracey his problem, since he trusted the watcher, and Tracey suggested that Ash send Taillow back to Pallet Town with Ash's other Pokémon. This kind of suggestion was exactly what Ash had needed; after saying 'good bye for a while', Ash put Taillow back in its Pokéball and let Tracey transport it to Professor Oak's lab and himself. Ash made Tracey promise several times to take good care of Taillow, until Misty butted in and told him to stop. Before Ash hung up the phone, however, Tracey was trampled by Ash's other Pokémon, who wanted to say 'hi!'. Bulbasaur, Heracross, Muk, Kingler, Cyndaquil, Totodile, and a few Tauros all stuck their heads up in the videophone screen to greet him, and Ash and his party just had to laugh. However, Ash noticed that two of his Pokémon weren't there, and so he asked Tracey where they were. Tracey explained that they, Noctowl and Bayleef, had been sulking lately because they had been missing Ash so much. Because Ash had room on his belt for up to three Pokémon now, Ash asked Tracey to transport the two of them to Ash so that he could take them traveling for a while. When their Pokéballs arrived, Ash let the two Johto Pokémon out so that May and Max could meet them. Noctowl immediately began soaring through the air in circles happily. Bayleef could hardly contain herself in her delight and held Ash so tight to her with her Vine Whip, that Ash was nearly strangled.

Now with Pikachu, Treecko, Corphish, Noctowl, and Bayleef, Ash had a pretty well rounded team. Misty had Corsola, Psyduck, Staryu, Wingull (she had captured it when she first came to Hoenn), and Togepi (who was still too young to battle, though). Brock had called home, like Ash had, and now had Lotad, Mudkip, Vulpix, Crobat, and Onix. May still had only Torchic and Beautifly, but she didn't care one bit. Even Max now had a Pokémon. It was a very small, but strong, Poochyena. Misty had captured it when they found it injured beside a road, one day, and seeing how Max was simply in love with it, gave him the Poochyena for his first Pokémon. Max was beyond ecstatic, proclaiming that when HE was a gym leader (which was his own goal), he was going to run a Dark-type gym, seeing as he didn't even know if there was one somewhere anyway. Max and Poochyena were soon best friends and worked great as a team. Max let Poochyena be out of its Pokéball about ninety-five percent of the time, so he was very close to everyone, like Pikachu and Togepi were.

The group of five continued on down the road, always ever onward. After Lavaridge, the next gym in Fortree City wasn't too far away. Soon, they hit Route 119, which would eventually bring them to their destination. Ash was all carefree and full of bliss, now. His best friend, Misty, was back now. He had two of his old Pokémon with him. Everyone was happy and healed. He had five badges, and a sixth one would certainly be easy to obtain. In very high spirits, Ash realized that he hadn't been this happy for a long time. Everything was now just perfect in his life. Well, as perfect as it could be while still not being the greatest Pokémon Master. Yet.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

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Well, whatcha think? Interesting? Not? I know, I know, this chapter really had nothing to do with the story. It's basically a story in itself! I really did need this chapter, though, to set the scene up, so no one gets confused. Believe me! It gets A LOT BETTER! Please review! 

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 1's (or any chapter's) title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter. :)


	2. Oh, Catch Me If You Can

Hey! Second chapter up! As far as chapter titles go, congratulations and thank you very much to Sparklewolf and J.C. the Wabbit, who got Chapter One's title right. The line "… from now until the end of time…" comes from the song _Together Forever_ from the Pokémon: 2 B A Master CD. Thanks again! Also, thank you to everyone who reviewed my first chapter and a second thank you to everyone who put this story on their favorite's list. Please, even if you reviewed before, review again! I REALLY appreciate it and value it.

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**CHAPTER 2: …Oh, Catch Me If You Can…**

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"La la, la la, la!" Ash sang out merrily, yet not so pleasantly, as he skipped down the dirt road called Route 119.

"Ash, will you be quiet with that already?! You're giving me a headache again."

"Misty," Ash stopped and turned around to face her, as he waited for her, and the rest of the group, to catch up with him. He continued innocently, "Why must you always dampen everyone's spirits so?"

"Big words coming from Ash," Brock muttered as everyone came to a stop, chuckled slightly, and readjusted his backpack on his back.

"Probably got it from him," May sneered playfully, and motioned at her scholarly younger brother. Max simply stuck his tongue out at her and returned his attention back to the book he was reading as he walked. He had bought the book, entitled The Acumen And Aptitude Of Shadows: A Study On Dark Type Pokémon, at Lavaridge's Poké Mart. He had hardly taken his nose out of it all day, and had almost ran into trees four times… just that afternoon. He turned a page, and May rolled her eyes.

"For your information," Misty butted in sassily (Ash could sense an argument coming on), "I do NOT dampen everyone's spirits. Your singing it atrocious, that's all."

"…Like a Gyarados?" Max raised his head up again, and inquired to his water tutor. Misty grinned. _Gyarados, the Atrocious Pokémon, as it's labeled in the Pokédex. _

"Like a Gyarados," Misty affirmed, and turned back to Ash to wait for his rebuttal. Everyone continued walking.

Ash considered his next move for a moment, before going with the 'right back at ya' option. "But you like Gyarados, don't ya, Misty?"

"I wouldn't like to hear one sing if it sounds like you." _Ouch. Man, that hurt. She didn't even stop to think! Boy, she's good. Well, she HAS gotten a lot of practice, but so have I, so why am I not good?_

"Oh, really?" was all Ash could come up with at the moment, though it was beyond lame.

"Really." __

"Well, I know I sound a lot better than a Gyarados." _Good, I set it up so we can start with the-_

"Do not!"

"Do, too!"

"Do not!"

"Do, too!"

"Do not!"

"Do, too!"

There was a thudding sound, and they paused from their verbal skirmish, not even warmed up yet. Ash, Misty, and Brock turned to see that May was sitting on the ground, slumped over, her feet sticking out to each side. She gave a heavy sigh.

"What now?" Misty asked, slightly annoyed. She didn't like being interrupted in the middle of a battle, whether it be using Pokémon or with Ash, and especially not by "_that wimpy little"_ May.

Before May could reply, Max, with his nose still in the book, kept walking and suddenly tripped over one of his sister's outstretched legs. He fell forward, his book thrown out of his hands, onto the road. His glasses were knocked askew and they went skittering down the road, a few feet away from his reach. He lay there, immobile for a moment, before his caramel eyes sightlessly searched for his glasses. Max was practically blind without them. Ash, Misty, and Brock sighed at the sight of the two pathetic-looking siblings sprawled on the road. May looked blankly at Max, but made no move to help.

At that moment, Pikachu, Togepi, and Max's Poochyena approached the scene. They had been walking together a few yards behind the humans, chattering quietly in Poké-speech. When Poochyena saw his master's predicament, it gave a short bark. Pikachu barely had time to whisk Togepi from her seat on Poochyena's back before the wolf pup dashed off to Max's aid. He accidental trampled his trainer in his hast to retrieve the glasses. Poochyena picked them up in his mouth and trotted happily back to Max, who was just sitting up. After a few seconds of blindly searching with his hands, Max felt his glasses being pushed into them and he glad accepted, putting the glasses back on. Everyone stared at him, and he gazed back at them, embarrassed, through Poochyena drool. He sweatdropped.

"Yuck," Max took them back off again to wipe them on his shorts. Poochyena sat loyally beside him, smiling happily. Pikachu and Togepi finally arrived at the rest stop. Pikachu leaped back up onto Ash's left shoulder and Misty gathered Togepi into her arms. The three standing humans waited for Max and May to get up. Max repositioned his cleaned glasses, picked his book back up off the road, and got to his feet. May stayed where she had collapsed and sighed again.

"What's wrong, May?" Ash asked.

"… I'm tired." With a groan, everyone fell down.

After they picked themselves back up, Misty inquired crossly, "We just took a break a while ago, so how on earth could you be tired?"

"… I don't know, just am."

"Maybe it's because you didn't eat enough at lunch, since you were so busy choreographing your contest routine with Torchic and Beautifly," Max supplied.

Everyone heard a rumbling sound. Ash sweatdropped. "Well," he giggled nervously, "since you mentioned food… ya know…" Misty snorted.

"Why don't we stop for today and camp here?" suggested Brock.

"Yes! Please!" May cried out.

Max stuck his nose back in his book and began reading again, so everyone took that as a 'yes'.

After careful consideration, "Let's at least have some dinner now," Ash replied.

"Misty?"

She looked away and shrugged indifferently. "Whatever." _Why, oh why, do we always end up doing what that skinny little… kid wants to do? _

"Yes!" May shouted, and leapt up immediately to help look for a place off the side of the route to camp for the night. Brock, Max, and Ash followed. Misty scowled, but no one saw her. _Look, we could have kept going. She's not tired at all! What is her deal, whining about everything like that? What the heck is that… that… scheming… twerp_ (she grinned at her use of the infamous label) _uh… scheming about? _

Misty could feel a wanton emotion rising in her. She knew exactly what it was, for she was really no stranger to it. Jealousy. She couldn't help it; there was something in her that always made her feel so jealous about just the slightest move, or exchange of words. Why was she jealous? She knew exactly why. _Because May traveled alone with Ash for at least a week before Max or Brock joined up, and I'll never know what went on then. She could have done… anything! She was the only girl in the whole group for months before I came back, and I'll bet anything that she made them do all she asked and took full advantage of Ash's sweet consideration for people._ _Ho-oh only knows what went on while I was gone, being the stupid gym babysitter for my stupid sisters. _Misty was disturbed by May's jovialness, which was displayed by her prancing movements.

"This looks like a good place. How about it, guys?" Brock asked, as they came upon a small clearing surrounded by rather dense foliage. It looked safe and rather comfortable. Ash nodded, so Brock swung his backpack off and started to reach for some cooking supplies. He heard Ash, Max, and May set their own packs down and start going through them. Looking up, Brock saw Misty sit down, clutching Togepi tightly, and glare at May very sullenly. _What's up with her? Why are she and May so… against each other? _Suddenly, Brock thought he understood. _Hmmm… could it be?_

Misty looked up from glowering fiercely at May, whose back was halfway turned to her, and noticed Brock staring at her. He raised an eyebrow in question, but Misty, embarrassed at getting caught sending a member of their own group dirty looks, turned away quickly, set Togepi down, and began going through her own bag. She noticed Brock look over at Ash suspiciously. Suddenly, she remembered that she had never finished her argument with Ash. _Drat._

Shoot. We didn't finish fighting. Ash looked up from his backpack at Misty. She was clearly engrossed in finding something. _She forgot, too. Oh well, I guess. _He looked closer at her face. She seemed a little bit upset, which made Ash begin to worry. Most of her face looked completely normal, except her eyes. Her foamy green-and-blue eyes were filled with a bit of anger and sadness that only someone like Ash could really see and interpret. Ash discovered (by himself) a long time ago, that someone's eyes, be it a Pokémon or a person, held their true emotion. Anyone could change their facial expression to not match their real feelings, but it was a whole lot harder to mask the emotion in the eyes. Ash depended on this logic to help him in many situations, as he was easily confused by facial expressions, though that was no fault of his own. He used the theory with Pikachu a lot, which helped Ash understand exactly what Pikachu was saying. He had completely memorized almost all of the emotions that Misty's aquatic eyes had ever held and could read them like a book. Ash saw now that Misty wasn't a little upset; she was a lot upset, but Ash didn't know what to do about it, though it made him feel really bad inside. He didn't know what was wrong, so he couldn't do anything about it. _Maybe I should ask her what's wrong. Nah, that'd sound weird._ Ash caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye of Brock scrutinizing him, and it made Ash slightly nervous. _What? What'd I do?_

What did I do? What have I EVER done to make that girl so mad at me? May gave a short, sad, sideways glance at Misty. May had seen Misty glaring at her a few minutes earlier. _Nothing. That's it. I've never done ANYTHING to her to make her mad at me! I was glad to meet her, but the first time she saw me, she had this weird… distrustful look on her face. What was I supposed to do? Actually, if anyone should be annoyed, it's me. She's the one sending me all these nasty looks for no reason. …Okay, so I sent a few nasty looks at her, too, but I only did it because she sent them at me first. Why can't we be friends? Didn't it ever bother her to be the only girl in a group of boys? It sure bothered ME. …And why on earth does she like Max more than me?! _

May sighed. Getting up and unrolling her sleeping bag like the others, May collapsed on her makeshift bed. She put her hands behind her head and rested them on her pillow. She closed her eyes, intending to take a small nap before dinner, but found that she wasn't sleepy. Not moving, she opened one eye a little bit and watched Misty unroll her own sleeping bag next to Ash's. She had just recently noticed that Misty had taken over May's own old sleeping bag spot, to the right of Ash. Now the order of their sleeping bags, from left to right, was Max's, May's, Misty's, Ash's, and Brock's. May found that slightly interesting, but a small bit irritating. _That Misty's sure been hanging around Ash an awful lot. Ash has been hanging around her a lot, too. Like, geesh, I still want to be Misty's friend, but am I not his friend anymore, too? Gosh, they must have been really close when it was just them and Brock traveling together, even though they do seem to fight a lot. Kinda like me and – _May's blue eyes suddenly blurred as blissful memory came rushing back to her. She forgot that she was still staring at Misty and Ash as her mind focused on a single image of a special significant person _… his steel gray eyes… his fluffy white hair hanging over that headband I got him the first Christmas we knew each other… oh, where are you now, my friend… my love…I never got to tell you I love you…_

"Dinner's ready, everyone. Come and get it," Brock called out. Misty's hands had been searching through her backpack, supposedly looking for something. However, she had really been trying to escape glances from the other trainers. First, Brock had shot her a suspicious look, then Ash (of all people) sent her a confused and almost concerned look, then May had glanced at her sadly. Misty had just about had enough with all of the fleeting looks everyone was sending all around the campsite, without every saying a word. The glimpses all sent messages, but the messages were confusing because no one was exactly sure what the other glimpses meant, or if they meant anything at all. _For instance_, Misty wondered, _what the heck did that look from Ash mean? I don't think he even knew I saw him look at me, but why did he look at me the way he did? He looked so… worried and upset or something. Oh, shoot. Now I have another thing to worry about: trying to figure out what ASH is worried about. Okay, now I'm worried about one… two… three… three things. _She sighed, and quickly took another look at May. May was laying still on her sleeping bag, her face extremely dreamy, looking past Misty. Misty felt a small rush of wind streak past her back, which she concluded, without turning around, was Ash responding to the 'come and get it' eagerly. Suddenly, Misty stiffened. _Was May looking at ASH in that wistful way? Oh, no. Heck no. That's what I was… afraid of… heck, what do I do now? What if she… tells him…that she…? Oh no, oh no, oh no._

Everyone eventually was seated on the three logs, that served as benches, around the campfire. Brock handed out bowls of soup that he had made for their dinner, and they all thanked him. Max, who was still lost in his textbook, Pikachu, Togepi, and Poochyena were sitting on one log, Ash and Misty on another, and May on the remaining one. Brock sat down next to May to eat. He tried to be cheerful, but everyone seemed really preoccupied. Dinner was almost always a noisy affair, what with May busily chatting about various things to no one in particular, Max interjecting into her monologues to supposedly correct her, Misty loudly chiding Ash for eating too quick or too messily, and Ash retorting Misty's degrading comments with his mouth full. Dinner this time, however, looked like it was going to be very silent, and probably uncomfortable. Ever since they had stopped, Brock observed that everyone had been very restrained, even himself. He figured that they all were engrossed in thought, as he was, so he made no move to start a conversation and just let things be as they were. Everyone WAS, in fact, engaged in contemplation.

…Oh, great. Now she looks even more upset. Maybe I SHOULD ask her what's going on; she'd probably ask me if I looked upset. Well, maybe I shouldn't. Mist looks like she's trying to hide it, so she'd probably get mad at me if I mentioned it, especially with the others around. I wonder if she knows that she's not very good at hiding her feelings? The only expression of hers that I don't get is that one that- Hey! May has that expression right now! What IS it? It's like… compassionate, or something… geesh, where AM I getting these big words from? Gee, thanks a lot, Max… I know! Maybe after dinner I can catch Misty alone so I can ask her what's wrong! That's perfect! Ketchum, you're a genius… oh great, now I sound like Gary…

_ …Why, oh why, me? Why is it always ME that has issues? Well, at least I don't have flirting issues like Brock does. In fact, I'm FAR from that…it's a good thing that I'm very good at hiding my feelings …I bet that May flirted a lot, when I wasn't here… okay, the one time I leave, and some girl had to come in and take me place! Heck, did I even HAVE a place in the FIRST place? Ho-oh only knows. Well, at least Ash isn't shunning me or anything…yet. In fact, we seem to be spending more time together than we used to…he seemed so very happy to see me when I first came back… Does May… really… love Ash… too? You know, I think I would die if she told him… before I could… and…he…loved…her…back… Yes… I would die… physically AND mentally… I know I would. I… I love you so much, Ash…Please, love me… and not her…heck… you're still too dense to even think of anything but Pokémon… probably what you're thinking of right now…_

_…It's a truly pitiful thing, Brocko, my man, to sit here and worry about everyone else's relationships because you don't have one yourself. Well, they are all my friends, so I should help them out a bit. First, though, I have to figure them out myself. Okay… we all know…well, I do at least…she didn't tell me but it is easy to guess…that Misty is in love with Ash. Bit of an interesting choice for her to make, if I do say so, but everyone is entitled to their own decisions, I suppose. Okay, Misty loves Ash… a lot…a whole lot. Ash doesn't understand this kind of stuff, because he's not mature enough yet, but he's been with her a lot more lately, so maybe he's kinda getting a thing for her. Okay, that's good. As their self-proclaimed elder brother, I do now formally give them my blessing. Anyway…second of all, May is in complete love with… some guy named… uh…Brendan. Brendan Birch, that's it, Professor Birch's nephew and May's old best friend. And I know this because May told me. Okay, May's in love with Brendan. Got it. Thirdly… okay, complete guess coming here… Misty doesn't seem to like May, so the obvious reason is that she must think of May as competition for Ash. That's got to be it. Too bad Misty never actually TOLD me she loves Ash, or I could reassure her about May and Brendan. No communication, that's the problem with everyone these days. Look at that, everyone else is in love, but you have no one… oh, Jenny, Joy, why do you break my heart so!? Why… _

…WAIT A SEC! Sharpedo can learn Ice Beam!? How can they learn Ice Beam? Ice Beam is a… well, it's an Ice-type attack, but Sharpedo is a Dark- and Water- type Pokémon! Wow! That's awesome! I wonder if May's Pokédex has that data in it? Does Misty know that, since Sharpedo is a Water-type, too? Hmmm… WHAT!? Sableye can learn Shock Wave, Water Pulse, Sunny Day, and Aerial Ace? A Dark- and Ghost- type can learn Electric-, Water-, Fire-, and Flying- type attacks? That's awesome too! I'd definitely want a Sableye for my gym. It would be really strong against all kinds of Pokémon… WHAT! Nuzleaf can learn Rock Tomb!? But…

…And then there was that time when we were out in the woods, and that Pinsir jumped out of the bush right in front of us. I was terrified out of my mind completely, but you were so calm and collected. You thought of the idea, giving it our picnic lunch to distract it, so quickly! It was almost funny…because it worked. Ha! After that, Mom and Dad wouldn't let us go into Petalburg woods unless we took Dad's Vigoroth with us. Brendan, you silly thing, you absolutely LOVED Dad's Vigoroth! You know what, my best friend? I loved you, and I'm still in love with you now. I don't love anyone else, even though I'm traveling with this pack of unruly boys…and Misty, but she kinda acts like a boy. Gosh, you're probably still too…what's the word that Misty uses for Ash all the time? DENSE! … You're still too dense to even think of anything but Pokémon… probably what you're thinking of right now…

As Max finished reading the chapter he was on, he glanced over the top of his book at his friends. Ash was just sitting there with a concerned look on his face, his dinner finished a long time ago, noticeably looking at Misty. Misty was slowly eating her soup, looking sadly into the campfire, totally oblivious to Ash's watching. May, who was sitting with her elbows on her knees and her hands propping up her chin, had a dreamy, happy, far-away look and had forgotten about her bowl, which was still half-full. Brock was staring alternately between Ash, Misty, and May with a bemused look on his face and his bowl was almost empty. Max sighed slightly and set his three-quarters-empty bowl of soup to his right, so that Poochyena could finish it off. Poochyena happily accepted. Max pulled a piece of grass from the ground and used it as a bookmark to mark his place. Three hundred and seventy nine pages in one day was no record for Max; he hadn't been able to read very fast while walking. For the first time in hours, Max set the book aside and became aware of what was going on around him. He suddenly felt restless, as he always did after a long period of studying.

"Um, hey guys?" Max tentatively spoke up. It was the first time that anyone had said anything during the whole meal, which caused a lot of reactions. Ash visibly jumped in fright and turned quickly to face Max, praying that no one had seen him basically gaping in worry at Misty the whole time. Misty slowly looked up from the campfire, failing to catch Ash turning away from watching her. Brock gave his attention to Max, but only after watching Ash's surprised movements. May continued to stare off into space, and remained unconscious of any action until Max had shouted her name a few times. When he finally had their concentration, he became nervous at their stares, but continued. "Um, I was just wondering, because you all are finished, if maybe we could, you know, well… I know we usually get ready to go to bed after dinner, but we ate so early, so…" Ash, Misty, and Brock all looked confused, but May grinned roguishly at him.

"Oh, that's it, is it? I should have guessed, since all you've done is read all day and go smashing into ten trees this afternoon."

"Four," Max muttered, "Four trees."

"Huh?" Ash and Misty said at the same time.

"Max has some kind of… Book Anxiety Disorder," May explained.

"I do not! There's no such thing as Book Anx-"

"Whenever he reads for a long time," she cut him off, "he always gets all fidgety and everything afterwards, from lack of being social." May spoke to Max slyly, "I know what you want to do. You want to play one of those little kid games like we used to, don't you?"

Max blushed severely. "Well," he retorted slowly, "I AM only eight." May rolled her eyes.

"I like games," Ash remarked to no one in particular.

"What kind of game did you have in mind, Max?" Brock questioned courteously.

Max gave Brock an appreciative smile. "I was hoping maybe we could play Brace Hide-And-Seek."

"I know Hide-And-Seek," Misty said, "but I've never heard of Brace Hide-And-Seek."

"That's because he made the term up," May grinned, "It just means that you play Hide-And-Seek, but everyone has a partner. Max just likes the partner thing because he gets scared if he hides alone. We always use to call it Couple Hide-And-Seek when we played it with all of the kids in our neighborhood… what on Earth is a 'brace' anyway?"

"It means 'a pair', and I am not scared to hide by myself. It's just more fun that way."

"I used to play a version of that back home," Misty commented sarcastically, yet bitterly, "Daisy, Lily, and Violet would hide together and let me look for them. After we clearly specified that you could only hide outside, they would go back to the gym and swim while I was out hunting frantically for them for hours."

"Gee, that's sad," Ash commented sympathetically. Misty gave him a quick smile. _Oh, good, she doesn't look so upset anymore. Maybe playing Hide-And-Seek would cheer her up… it's not really a little kid game, is it?_ "You know, Max, this Brace Hide-And-Seek sounds like fun. Maybe we should play. I always used to love Tag and stuff like that, and I haven't played any for a while. I like games," he added again.

Max smiled happily. "Okay, that's two people!" He was getting very enthusiastic.

"If it's better than my sister's version, I'll play," Misty commented. _I'll do anything to stop thinking about all of these issues… Oh! In this game we have partners, so maybe I can be partners with Ash! Wait…what if he ends up being partners with May? Drat!_

"I want to play, too, because I AM the master of hiding places!" Brock declared, "My brothers and sisters could never find me when I played with them."

"Just call him Kecleon," Ash joked.

"The red zig-zag stripe gives him away," Misty smirked. The whole group laughed, even Brock, but Ash saw Misty's smile looked rather strained. _Oh, man, what IS the matter!? I need to know!_

"Okay, that's four!" Max was practically jumping up and down in his seat. He gazed at his sister with Eevee-eyes, "May, please, please, please, please, please! Please play! You know you have fun!"

May rolled her eyes, but her playful grin gave her away. She didn't answer for a moment, though, to drag out Max's suspense. "Well…" she drawled, "Even though it's more for little kids… I guess anything to stop you from hurting your brain from reading too many words."

"YES!" Max shouted, shoving a fist into the air and leaping up. He paused, then sweatdropped. "Sorry."

"Okay, then let's get ready to play," Brock said while collecting their food bowls, which had various stages of emptiness, "So how does it work, and what are the rules? I'm guessing that this is not just regular Hide-And-Seek, besides the 'playing with partners', is it?"

"Couple Hide-And-Seek is-"

"Brace."

"…Whatever. BRACE Hide-And-Seek is really pretty simple. Everyone has a partner. The rule is, if you are hiding, you and your partner have to hide in the same place, so it can be a bit tricky. If you split up with your partner, you're disqualified. If you and your partner are searching for the other groups, the two of you can't split up either; you have to search together. The first pair to be found are the searchers in the next round. When you and your partner are found, you have to follow the seeking pair around until every group is found or has turned themselves in. Let's see," May began to tick off items on her fingers, "Two or more groups can't hide together… you can't help the searchers spot the other groups if you've already been found… to turn yourself in, you have to return to the base where the searchers' started… oh, yeah, you have to be touching your partner the whole time…"

"That's all," Max spoke up. After a moment of thinking, May affirmed this with a nod.

Everyone was quiet for a moment, letting the rules sink in. " 'Not as hard as it sounds," May confirmed.

"Okay," Brock said, setting the bowls aside to wash later, "Then let's get into our groups so we can start. If we go ahead and play, we can play a few rounds before it gets too dark to see."

"Alright, alright," Max immediately took command, standing erect on his log bench. "Stand up, stand up." The four sitting humans stood up obediently. "Now, since I initiated this game, I get to choose my partner first." Max gazed around at them, his arms crossed, inwardly weighing the pros and cons of choosing each person according to the rules of Brace Hide-And-Seek. Ash felt rather nervous for some reason, but he couldn't think of a reason why he should be. Finally, Max said, "I choose… Poochyena."

"HUH?" Ash, Misty, Brock, and May all cried at the same time, as Poochyena leapt happily into Max's arms and licked his face.

"The Pokémon get to play!?" May asked incredulously.

"Duh!" Max muttered, shaking his head. The others groaned and fell down. They slowly stood back up. "Okay, let's see… Pikachu, you can pick your partner next."

"Pipipi." Pikachu hugged Togepi tight to himself. Togepi chirped.

"What about me, Pikachu?" Ash asked playfully.

"Pika Pi?" Pikachu's ears sagged.

"I'm just kidding. It's okay," Ash said sincerely. Pikachu perked back up.

"Okay, now you all split up," Max turned to his friends and sister. The four looked at each other.

Hmmm… I know! I'll get Ash and Misty to be partners, so maybe Misty will understand that May doesn't love Ash, and maybe Ash will find out that he kinda loves Misty. Hee, hee! Brock: Matchmaker Extraordinaire… except for yourself… "Hey, May, you can be my partner."

May beamed, happy not to be the last person picked. "Sure Brock."

Ash glanced at Misty. _Yes! Me and Mist are partners, but I can't believe Brock didn't pick her or me! I wonder what's going on._ "I guess we're partners, then, Misty." She nodded, for she was thinking too hard to speak. _Why did Brock do that? I was sure he was going to pick me or Ash, because it's the most sensible thing to do… wait… is Brock trying to get me and Ash together or something? Don't know why he would, but… what if he is? Well, I'm definitely not going to complain. Actually, thanks a lot, Brock. I owe you one… maybe I'll let you hit on Nurse Joy or something next time, to pay you back for this… maybe…_

"Okay," Max superiorly instructed, "We've got our partners, so now we have to decide who goes-"

"MAX! You're skipping the best part!" May whined.

"…What did I skip?"

"The handcuffing!" May replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"What handcuffing?" Misty stammered nervously.

"May, that's not a rule, so you don't have to do it if you don't want to."

"But it's so much fun, Max!"

"What handcuffing?" Ash repeated for Misty.

Max sighed impatiently. "Handcuffing is just a rule that May made up. It's where you get a piece of cloth or something and tie your wrist to your partner's. It ensures that each pair never separates, and that you were touching each other the whole time."

"See, it IS necessary!"

"No it's not!"

"Well, I'm going to look for something to handcuff everyone with anyway, whether you like it or not!" With that, May dashed over to her side pouch and started rummaging through it. "Come on, everyone! Look for something!"

Ash, Misty, Brock, and Max moaned slightly, but did as May had bid, hoping to make the process of handcuffing go a bit faster, for even though no one said it aloud, they were all excited about the game. Ash pushed aside all of the items in the top of his backpack, for he knew that there was nothing there that could tie wrists together. His hand blindly ventured deeper into his pack, searching for some kind of cloth. Ash wasn't sure if he knew what all was in his bag anyway, because he knew that he hadn't looked that far into it since he left Pallet Town to go to Hoenn. His mom could have literally packed anything in it! When his hand was almost to the bottom, Ash felt something soft and fabric-like brush the back of his fingers. He twisted his hand around and latched onto the item. He pulled it out and when he saw what it was, Ash gasped in delight, causing everyone to turn and see what was going on.

"Ash!" Misty cried, "It's your old vest!" And so it was. Slightly wrinkled, it was still the blue, yellow trimmed, white collared vest that Ash had worn the day he left home. Ash held it up and shook it to get the creases out.

"Cool!" Brock commented, "I thought you left it back at your house, Ash."

"I did, but I guess my mom packed it when I wasn't looking." Ash's mom had gotten him a new traveling outfit, something he had never had through his journeys through three regions, before he left for Hoenn. He had agreed to wear it, seeing as the Hoenn journey was to be a completely brand new start, because he left all of his Pokémon (except Pikachu) and Misty and Brock behind. The whole idea of a "brand new start" had vanished, because again he had Misty, Brock, and two of his Johto Pokémon with him, and now he had his old vest. Immediately, Ash unsnapped his belt (which contained his Pokéballs), wiggled out of his new vest, which had no opening in the front, and slipped his old one on. It automatically clung to him just right.

Before anyone could say anything, Ash paused, then whipped around to his backpack. He plunged his hand back into it, right to the bottom, and frantically felt around. His fingers skimmed over top of something cloth-like, but not as soft as his vest. His face lit up and he jerked the object out hopefully. "Yes!" Ash cried out, holding the item up. Misty and Brock smiled, knowing all of the sentimental value the item held for Ash. It was his old Pokémon League hat, red and white, with the red brim and league symbol on the front. Ash loved that hat. He quickly whipped his new cap off of his head, throwing it on top of the new crumpled vest, and placed his favorite hat on top of his head. It, like the vest, instantly became almost an extension of his body.

"Now that's the Ash Ketchum I know," Misty commented, and couldn't help but giggle as Ash jerked his hat backwards into his "Battle Mode".

"Ash wore that outfit the whole time he ever traveled, before he came to this region," Brock commentated to May and Max, who were very confused. They nodded, now understanding.

Ash turned his hat back the right way. "I think I'll wear this outfit again, seeing as it always used to bring me good luck, like in the Orange League. Maybe it will help me win this Hide-And-Seek game!"

"Well, did anyone find anything to use?" May interrupted impatiently. "I didn't." With the attention away from him for a moment, Ash slipped his Pokédex into the vest he was now wearing, and secretly took an item from inside his new hat and tucked it into his Pokémon League hat.

"Nothing here," Misty replied. _Like I would let you use anything of mine anyway, menacing… twerp._

"Nope," reported Max.

"Nothing here either," Ash added. He saw that Misty's eyes, which had gleamed contentedly when Ash was fawning over his hat, were again filled with distress. _This is getting worse, and I don't like it. There's no reason for her to be so upset, is there? Did I do something wrong? That's it! First chance I get, I'm asking her what's been bothering her! She's worrying me, for Ho-oh sakes… and I usually don't get worried so easy, unless it's about my Pokémon or something important to me!_

Brock gave one more glance at the contents of his backpack. "I couldn't find anything either. We don't even have any bandages or Escape Ropes or anything. Remind me to restock when we get to Fortree," instructed Brock to the youngest member of the group. Max nodded.

"Aw, man!" cried May unhappily, "How are we going to play without handcuffs? Someone will cheat!"

"May, you forget," Brock countered gently, "who you're playing with. It's us, remember?"

May flushed a deep crimson color. "Sorry. I- I wasn't thinking."

"LET'S PLAY ALREADY!" Max wailed out in annoyance. Poochyena whimpered and wiggled a bit in Max's arms as the boy hugged the pup tighter.

"Alright, let's start; no more distractions. And Max, you're going to strangle your Pokémon that way," May chided. Max relaxed his hold and Poochyena quit squirming. "Now, who's going to be the first pair to be the searchers?"

"NOT IT!" Max screamed out, accompanied by a howl from Poochyena.

"NOT IT!" Ash yelled out automatically, and heard Misty call out the same thing at the same time.

"CHU PIKA!" Pikachu yowled loudly for both himself and his partner, who was personally busy pulling pieces of grass out of the ground one by one.

"Well, I guess that means that we're the searchers, huh?" Brock said to May and chuckled. May resigned to her fate with a sigh.

"Brock, you and May have to count to a hundred," Max retook control, "We three groups will all hide and we'll only hide in about a two hundred foot radius from this camp. You HAVE to count ALL the way to a hundred, MAY! Got it? And don't stick your tongue out at me like that, or I'll do it right back, sister!"

"Fine!" May shot back.

"What's a 'radius'?" Ash questioned, but they all disregarded him.

"Now everyone, hold hands or something, 'cause you have to be touching the whole time," commanded May. She reached over and assertively grasped Brock around the wrist. Brock winced. May was known to have an intense grip and Max would sometimes call her a Kingler behind her back. Max embraced Poochyena closer, but not as rough as the last time. Pikachu reached over and took Togepi paw in paw, and Togepi looked approvingly at the electric mouse, not fully understanding what was going on.

Ash abruptly became nervous and glanced over at Misty. Misty's face was nonchalant, but her eyes glistened frantically. He paused, not knowing what to do. Sometimes, if Ash made contact with Misty, or made a move to do so, she would basically pound his head in with her fist, or if it was available at the moment, her mallet. Sometimes, though, she didn't object to his touch, especially if he was trying to help her or comfort her. _I do want to help her. I want to know what's wrong._ As his mind considered what to do, the length of the pause in action drew the attention of the other groups. They were now watching to see if either Ash or Misty were going to make a move to touch each other, or if one of them, most probably Misty, were going to object to the rule. Suddenly, however, Misty reached over with her left hand and clutched Ash around his right wrist. His first reaction was to jerk away, as this was usually a threatening gesture coming from her, but he stilled his body before he could shudder. Everyone, including Ash, stared at her for a second. She still obtained her imperturbable and apathetic expression. "Are we going to play or what?" she inquired calmly.

"Let's start!" replied Max. "Turn and face that tree or something to count, you two." Brock and May did as they were instructed. They were both silent for a moment.

"Count out loud!"

"ONE," May yelled, to satisfy Max. "TWO," Brock joined in. "THREE… FOUR…" Max, with a wild look in his eye, took off with Poochyena out of the campsite. Pikachu ushered Togepi out of the clearing and into some undergrowth. Ash was jerked sharply by Misty. She took charge and almost dragged him into the surrounding woods. Her pace was fast, so Ash had a hard time keeping up with her. A moment went by. The light from the campfire slowly disappeared, but still neither Ash nor Misty had glimpsed a suitable place to hide. Ash had a hard time seeing anything, however, as her gait got faster still. Even though he was worried about her, he unexpectedly stopped and yanked his arm backwards in irritation. Misty stumbled backwards a pace or two and gave him a livid look. This was always a warning sign, but he ignored it, pulled his right arm out of her grasp and reached with his left hand to grab her right wrist. She realized what he was about to do, and started to move her arm away when they made contact. Ash missed her wrist by accident, and grabbed her hand instead. Ash didn't bother to exchange her hand for her wrist, because clutching someone's hand was much more humane than their wrist. Misty froze, and it took Ash a second to comprehend that she was nervous about holding his hand.

"What?" he asked.

Slowly, softly, she answered, "Nothing." The reply was so out of character for her that Ash froze, too. She looked away from him. _Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh…he's holding my hand! Calm down, it doesn't mean anything; he just doesn't want you tearing his arm off like that… he's holding my hand! Hmmm… it feels so… right, too. _

When she didn't continue her answer, Ash muttered, "Well, we better keep going then, before Brock and May stop counting." She nodded, and he leisurely started back their pace. The pair now walked side by side, hand in hand, looking for an object suitable for two people to hide behind, in, or under. All they saw were trees, skinny trees without low branches, and bushes, scraggly and halfway bare. "We better find something to hide behind quick, or we're gonna be caught first." She nodded again.

Ash turned his head to watch her for a minute, and somewhat forgot about the game going on. She was apparently still watching for hiding places, but her mind was racing with preoccupied thoughts. _Does May really love Ash at all? She didn't even protest a little when Brock chose her as a partner. Does Ash… does he… love… me? He was trying to grab my wrist, and caught my hand, but he just left his hand in mine. DOES that mean anything? Misty, who are you kidding? Ash doesn't think like that, and you know it. Ash, I wish you weren't so dense._ Her foamy green-blue eyes once again betrayed her real emotion to the boy strolling next to her, holding her hand. _This is the perfect time to ask her! I should have thought of it sooner._

"Mist?" He looked at her.

"…What?" She kept staring straight ahead.

"What's wrong?"

"…What do you mean?"

"Well…" Ash meticulously chose his words, "I've noticed… that all evening… you've been… well… worried about… something. At least you look worried about something." She didn't reply, though her eyes widened a bit. _How could he know I was worried about something? How could he tell?_ "And… I was wondering if maybe…? …You can tell me what's wrong, you know. If you want to. I can listen. Or help. And I can keep secrets, too, if you're worried about that." He shut his mouth tight and looked away. It was Misty's turn to look at her rather nervous companion. When they spoke again, it was in very soft voices, though they didn't realize that they were doing so.

"I… how did you… know that I… was worried?"

"Well… you just looked worried and upset and… that's all."

"Oh… well, thanks for being… concerned?" She wasn't sure of what word to use, because she wasn't sure what Ash was thinking. _Has Ash… been worried about ME all evening? Was he thinking about me? _

"Yeah. I am concerned." _He WAS thinking about me!_ After rethinking his last sentence, Ash felt that he had, in some way, implied something, but he wasn't positive. He turned his head to face her again. "So can you tell me what's wrong?"

Oh, I wish I could, Ash! But I can't… because I'm worried about YOU, about MAY, about…US. "…No." Misty saw the injured look on his face, and tried recklessly to explain without… explaining. "It's not that I don't trust you, or anything. Really, I would tell you. I just… can't tell you." _Oh. Good going, Waterflower. Now you hurt his feelings. Smooth. Real smooth. _

"Yes you can! You can tell me anything!" Desperation was easily detected in his voice, but Ash was now too worried about Misty to notice. She was worried about something that she couldn't tell HIM, of all people? _Anything, Ash? Yes, I can tell you anything… anything except the fact that I love you and I've always loved you and, most importantly than that right now, that I'm worried that you'll never love me back and that May will tell you that she loves you first and you'll love May instead._

"Yeah, I know," Misty's brain was laboring swiftly to come up with something to assure Ash, "It's… I'm just worried about… uh… it's girl stuff, so you probably wouldn't understand… well, I'm mean, of course you wouldn't, but… uh…. yeah. Girl stuff." _Well, it's not exactly a lie. Love IS mostly girl stuff… unless, of course, you're Brock… but he can't tell the difference between a 'crush', if you can even call it that, and real, true love. Oh, man, my brain's messed up! I have WAY too many issues without thinking about Brock's love problems. It's not like he's thinking about my love problems or anything. _

"Oh, okay." Ash didn't believe what Misty had just explained to him for a moment, but he let it slide. She had retained an expressionless appearance, but her eyes had darted back and forth anxiously, a sure sign of falsehood. For her to not tell him, to lie to him, Ash knew that it, whatever it was, was bothering Misty more than anything he had ever known her to be bothered about. There were quite a lot of things that bothered Misty, too. Ash vaguely wondered if her dire current problem bothered her more than bugs did.

Ash and Misty walked in silence for a few seconds, still hand and hand. They suddenly came to a clearing in the middle of the woods and walked out into the center of it, where there was a small bare patch of ground. Like a bolt of Pikachu's lightning, Ash recalled the Brace Hide-And-Seek game that they were supposed to be participating in the whole time they were talking.

"Misty! The game! I forgot about the game!"

Misty's eye's widened in shock. "I forgot, too. Drat!"

"Shoot!" Ash twisted his head side to side rapidly, looking for a boulder or a thick tree. He also glanced around for a glimpse of Brock or May. There was no sign of either subject. "We're basically trapped. Brock and May are probably almost done counting now, unless they're already looking for everyone."

"We CAN'T be caught first!"

"I know. Hey, Mist, you know how Max said something about a two hundred foot radius? Uh, what's a 'radius'?"

"Ash, you don't know what a 'radius' is!?"

"No. What is it?"

"You know what it is, don't lie."

"…You don't know either, do you, Mist?"

"Well, it has something to do with circles. At least I know that."

"What do circles have to do with Brace Hide-And-Seek?"

"Who knows?"

"…Max knows."

"Well, he's the only one." Ash sighed dejectedly, for they both had now realized that they had gone too far away from the camp, and absentmindedly squeezed Misty's hand for comfort. Misty felt him do so, and gave their linked hands a quick peek out of the corner of her eye. Ash had simply slipped his hand into hers when he had went to grab her wrist, and that's the way it was now. She looked away from Ash, so as to not arouse suspicion at her next move. Slowly, carefully, she turned her hand and slipped each of her individual fingers between his. Misty squeezed his hand back to comfort him, but the stronger grip didn't loosen afterwards. Ash noticed her movements, but didn't get any strange ideas from it. Instead, he tightened his own grip to match hers, glad that she had not cuffed him for wanting her reassurance. Misty's heart began to beat double time in ecstasy.

"There is absolutely nothing to hide behind anywhere."

"This is ridiculous!" Misty stomped her left foot on the dirt patch they were standing on, and a small wisp of dust spun through the air around her shoe. Unnoticed, a small crack in the ground made its way from the point of impact.

"I wonder if Max and Poochyena, and Pikachu and Togepi, have found somewhere to hide."

"They're all smaller than us, so they should have found a bush or something." Unnoticed, the crack grew and branched out.

"We should have played Tag. It would have been more fun in a place like this."

"We should have taken that book away from Max when he bumped into that second tree." Unnoticed, the crack spread under Ash's feet, too.

"You know that you wanted to play. Games are fun. I like games."

"I like them, too, but this kind of forest is not good for Hide-And-Seek." Unnoticed, the cracks met and the ground started to crumble. Ash felt a strange sensation under his feet, and he glanced down. Noticed, the ground started to sag. Misty glanced down, too. Noticed, the ground suddenly started to give way under their combined weight. Both Ash and Misty's russet-colored and ocean-tinted eyes grew wide. The astonishment of their findings paralyzed their minds, bodies, and conversation. Abruptly, the ground completely disappeared from under them and for a fourth of a split second, they gazed upon a giant, gaping, pitch black hole. Ash and Misty fell, straight down, feet first, into the opening. The Umbreon-black hole seemingly rose up to meet them in a flash. Everything went so fast and so sudden, that the surprise event wasn't able to process in Ash's mind fast enough for him to reach out and grab the edge of the hole. All he could do was cry out in fright and hang onto Misty's hand like a lifeline. She screamed along with him, and reached out her free hand to clutch onto him as her own lifeline. The light from the opening disappeared from above them a second later. The dark was complete as they continued to fall, the downward tunnel being so narrow that the walls would sometimes scrape against their unprotected arms. They fell, and there was no sign of their descent stopping anytime soon.

Ash and Misty's screams resoundingly echoed back up through the hole, but they became faint, fast. Everything was then silent. Dust from the collapsed dirt billowed around the opening for a moment, then settled into the grass. Everything was then motionless. Then, there was only a hole, hidden slightly by thin blades of undergrowth, in the middle of a meadow, in the middle of the forest, in the middle of Route 119, in the middle of Hoenn.

Just a hole in the ground.

"… NINETY-EIGHT… NINETY-NINE… ONE HUNDRED!" Both Brock and May's voices rang out into the trees. May whipped around excitedly, and nearly pulled Brock's wrist out of its socket.

"You know," she whispered secretively and slyly, "that's the first time I've actually counted ALL the way to a hundred, but don't tell Max."

"… 'Kay…" Brock dizzily answered, still recovering from May's wrenching. May immediately bolted off with a wild whoop, dragging Brock, with a bruised wrist, behind her.

"READY OR NOT! HERE WE COME!"

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

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WOW! Cliffhanger, huh? Hee, hee! Don't be mad, just enjoy the suspense. Rather fluffy, too… it gets even better! Well, the more reviews I get, the faster I write! To tell you the truth, I write on this story, while eating a bagel and peanut butter for breakfast, everyday before school. Talk about devotion. ;) Once more, please, even if you reviewed before, review again! I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY appreciate it and value it.

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 2's (or any chapter's) title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter. (HINT: This chapter's title is from a Pokémon Movie CD.)


	3. Hand In Hand We Walk As One

Well, here you are! Third Chapter and going strong! As far as chapter titles go, congratulations and thank you very much to Sparklewolf (again), J.C. the Wabbit (again), and Chibimatchmaker, who got Chapter Two's title right. The line "… oh, catch me if you can…" comes from the song _Catch Me If You Can_ (big change from the lyric line, huh?) from the Pokémon: The First Movie CD. Thanks whole bunches! Also, thank you to everyone who's reviewed. Please, even if you reviewed before, review again! I like to know what you think about the story's progress.

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**CHAPTER 3: …Hand In Hand We Walk As One…**

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Togepi, finally succeeding in pulling a difficult, thick piece of grass out of the ground with one paw, giggled openly and Pikachu put his own free paw over the little egg's mouth. Pikachu toted Togepi back behind the rock that served as their hiding place. The rock only shielded them on one side, which was risky in the game of Brace Hide-And-Seek, but it was all that Pikachu had been able to come across to conceal behind. The electric mouse had found the forest to be frustrating for its lack of places to hide. He had considered hiding himself and Togepi back at the camp in Ash's sleeping bag, or even in the backpack that Ash had left behind, but reckoned that it might be against one of the rules to hide at the base.

To tell the truth, Pikachu liked games, and also the idea of Brace Hide-And-Seek. He liked the modification of the original activity for the same reason as Max; Pikachu was sometimes afraid of hiding alone. However, as Pikachu had watched Togepi's pursuit of weeding the woodland soil, he had wondered to himself why he hadn't picked his master, Ash, as a partner. At least Ash would have been quiet, still, and paid attention to the game. Well, Togepi was still a baby, thus her attention span was far shorter than it could have been, so Pikachu didn't really blame his little companion. Ash was too big to have hidden behind this rock anyway. Nevertheless, Pikachu wondered if Ash could have found a better hiding place than he had.

Pikachu took the quickest and speediest of glimpses around the side of the boulder. Nothing. No May and no Brock. Pikachu sighed gratefully and turned his attention back to Togepi. Gaining her friend's attention, Togepi squeaked gleefully. And loudly.

"Pika…" Pikachu shushed his partner gently. Pikachu was glad to have Togepi as a partner, regardless of the din she was undoubtedly making, if only so that Ash could have Misty as a partner. Pikachu wasn't aware, but both he and Brock had exactly the same thoughts about Ash and Misty. Pikachu was simply positive that Misty loved his master very much (Pokémon can smell emotion, especially strong ones like fervent love), and that was just fine with him. Pikachu adored and respected Misty quite a lot, and enjoyed her praise and attention as much as he did Ash's. Pikachu also thought that they were perfect for each other and looked cute together. For these reasons, he, like Brock, would willingly give his blessing to them any day. Pikachu was encouraged by the friendly interest that Ash had taken in Misty, and always let them be unaccompanied when they took to chatting, a recent change from constant bickering.

Pikachu stole another quick peek around their rock, decided it was safe, and settled down a bit. He sat down, still holding one of Togepi's paws, and inattentively watched her pulling up pieces of grass in captivation. He vaguely wondered if Ash and Misty had been able to find a place to hide. Togepi trilled when she managed to uproot a particularly thick stalk of grass, and Pikachu put his free paw to his lips to silence her. He figured that she had gotten the idea for her activity from watching Max pick a piece of grass to use as a bookmark. Ignoring his warning, Togepi gazed merrily up at her friend, trilled again, and motioned to a small pile of deracinated weeds. Pikachu grinned exasperatedly, but very fondly, at her tiny yet proud accomplishment.

Pikachu's ears twitched as he felt a slight vibration in the air current. The disruption was trivial, but the sensitive Pokémon noticed it just the same. Pikachu felt the presence of other organisms that were very near, and he could just tell, the way Ash could interpret the emotion in eyes, that the turbulence was of two humans. Dreading what he knew he would find, Pikachu slowly turned his head around and stared up to the peak of the rock. Staring back down at him was May, with a very roguish and boastful gleam in her eyes, and Brock, who gave Pikachu a slightly apologetic smile.

"CAUGHT 'YA!" May screamed out elatedly, throwing both fists into the air and yanking Brock's wrist in the process. Brock winced. "PIKCAHU! TOGEPI! I GOTCHA! YOU'RE OUT!"

"Pikaaa…" Pikachu's ears drooped and he sighed, but he nodded acceptingly, glad that the lengthy waiting was over. Pikachu was sure that Togepi would be better at searching than hiding. He looked down at his partner. She was unfazed by May's shouting, only pausing long enough to glance up cheerfully at Pikachu before resuming her weeding. Pikachu sweatdropped.

"Now we gotta go find Max and Poochyena, and Ash and Misty." May smirked. "It should be very easy, too." She started to drag Brock back the way they had come. Brock almost tripped and he winced again.

"Could we slow down a bit, maybe?" Brock asked hopefully, but got no response.

"Pipipi," Pikachu called his companion, tugging gently on her paw. Togepi abandoned her pile of grass without thought, chirped, and followed Pikachu. They had a hard time keeping up with May and Brock, for May was dragging Brock behind her expeditiously.

"Hey, Brock," May said slowly, as they continued their pace, "You know how Max said something about a two hundred foot radius?"

"Yeah."

"Uh, what's a 'radius'?"

Black. Everything was black.

Ash's mind slowly, so slowly, began to operate again. So slowly, in fact, that Ash wasn't aware that he was conscious. After the thought that he was awake drifted around in his head for a while, it finally settled in, bringing up the thought that if he was now conscious, then he had to have been unconscious before. After his brain established that he had been unconscious, he gradually began to wonder why he had become unconscious in the first place. Then, faster now, he remembered the hole in the ground and descending into it. He then established that he must have finally hit the bottom of the hole and the impact made him black out. Suddenly, a bit of panic set in as Ash became worried about why everything was black. He was apprehensive until he realized that his eyes were still closed. He opened his eyes. There couldn't have been a bigger contrast.

White. Everything was white.

His brain was stunned by the inverted color, and he snapped his eyes closed again. His senses shocked, he let the absence of color calm his strained eyes as he contemplated why everything was white. _If I'm in the bottom of a hole, shouldn't everything be black? What's going on here? _Ash slowly squinted his eyes. White. He opened them a bit wider as the intensity of the whiteness went away. His eyes were completely open, and still there was only white. That task completed, Ash focused on figuring out what he was doing. He felt that he was lying on his stomach, face down, in something soft and fluffy. The whiteness was the soft and fluffy he was on. Ash tried to move each of his arms and legs individually. They all worked without complaint. He flexed his fingers and balled them up into fists. As he did so, some of the whiteness compacted in his hands. He turned his face slightly to watch his left hand. He let go of the whiteness, and it fell out of his hand in a clump. The whiteness… as his whole mind and body had been paralyzed, it had just now occurred to him that the whiteness was cold. Cold and wet.

…Snow? Ash was now confused. Slowly, laboriously, Ash put his hands underneath him and pushed himself up. He slid his legs under himself and eventually got into a kneeling position. The whiteness was snow. Ash was in a snow bank. The cold snow was a great contrast to the environment that Ash had been in before he had fallen down in the hole, so Ash was bewildered to the point that it was hard to reason. The fairly cold temperature hit Ash and he trembled. Then, a split second later, the thought that had been nagging at him in the back of his mind came forward and he became desperately anxious.

"Misty?" Ash's voice was squeaky and hoarse. He jerked his head back and forth, wildly searching, until he glanced to his right. Only two feet away from him lay Misty. She looked unconscious and was face down in the snow, like he had been. He immediately crawled over to her side and carefully turned her onto her back. She didn't move. Ash put his right hand on her left shoulder and gave her a little shake to wake her up. She still didn't move. Ash sniffed and continued to shake her. His heart beat faster as he started to fret. She didn't respond, and Ash choked down a worried sob. Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, Ash felt her muscles tense under his touch and he froze. Slowly, Misty stirred, giving a small grunt of exertion, and her eyes fluttered half-way open. Ash, trembling, smiled down at her and gave a small sigh of relief. She stirred again when her half-open eyes saw him, and he saw her try to mumble something. "What?" She tried to speak again, failed, and shakily reached out her hand to him instead. Ash realized that she was asking him to help her sit up. Ignoring her hand, he leaned down, slipped his right arm under her back, and tenderly pulled her up.

Misty's muddled and whirling mind became even more confused at Ash's concerned actions. She reached out with both hands as he pulled her up and clutched onto his black shirt to steady herself. She felt a tingly feeling where Ash's hand was on the back of her shirt. Misty looked up into his face. His eyebrows were knitted together in angst. As she got into an upright position, her brain became free of its haze and she pulled her knees up to her chest. She heard Ash let go of a strangled sob and suddenly, Misty found that he was hugging her tightly to him. She closed her eyes as a trillion thoughts and dreams of Ash that Misty had always imagined flooded her mind, fusing together with the fact that he was holding onto her.

Ash wasn't sure what made him snap, but he found that he needed to know for sure that she was really all right. He had almost feared the worst for her and he hadn't gotten over his scare yet. His right arm was already holding her up, so all he had to do was wrap his left arm around her. He did. He hung his head over her right shoulder so that she wouldn't see his watery eyes. _Ah, Mist… I- I thought… I thought I'd almost lost you there for a second. _As his heart rate slowed down, Ash found that, just like when he had been holding onto her when she peddled them to the Pokémon Center, he was becoming self-conscious. He was just considering letting go of her before she could choose to hit him, when he realized that the hands that were clutching his shirt had not pushed him away. Instead, they were gripping even tighter to his shirt and her head was lightly and timidly resting on his own right shoulder. Ash's heart jumped happily. _She… she didn't… she didn't reject me!? Why not?…Was she scared about falling into the hole, too?_

Between Ash's worry and Misty's reverie, the embrace lasted longer than it normally would have, if it even would have occurred at all. They didn't speak a word, but it wasn't precisely uncomfortable either. Misty slightly melted in his arms in her rather consistently re-occurring romantic mindset. As long as Misty was contented letting him hold her, Ash would continue to embrace her closely. This was his nature, having spent countless nights in the past holding a fatigued Pikachu after a particularly exigent battle.

Misty was truthfully astonished at how long they had been hugging. She wasn't sure if she could believe that he was intentionally holding her for a lingering time. She opened her eyes to see if something was the matter and was keeping Ash from letting go of her. Just like Ash had, when she glanced at her surroundings, all she saw was white.

"Snow? Where… where did the snow come from?" Ash loosened, then let go of his tight grip on her and leaned back so that he could see her dumbfounded face. She gazed back at him in question. Absentmindedly, Misty still clutched tight to his shirt, but neither one noticed.

"I- I don't know," Ash answered truthfully. He gave another glance around, soaking up the image of the snowy environment in his mind. Ash suddenly felt that his shins were somewhat damp, and he realized that his jeans were also literally soaking up some of the snow, but the wetness rather than the image. He went to stand up, so as to not cause any more damage to his pants. He only got half-way up before he was unintentionally prevented from doing so by Misty still hanging onto his shirt. She hadn't seen him start to get up, as she had been enthralled at the snow bank around them, but now she felt the small jerk of his shirt in her hands.

Immediately realizing what she was doing, and becoming relatively humiliated, Misty tried to let go, but her icy cold fingers had seemingly frozen in their position and couldn't move. Misty had the slightest inclination to believe that perhaps it was her heart, and not her fingers, that wouldn't let go of Ash, but it didn't matter to her at the moment because she was still in the embarrassing predicament. Her emotions were only allowed a brief two or three seconds to run wild, for Ash (oblivious to her awkwardness and having no awkwardness of his own) had already put a hand under her arm and was helping her stand up. With Ash's assistance, Misty struggled up, and stumbled backwards slightly before they both were able to plant their feet firmly on the ground. Auspiciously, she was able to pry her fingers away from his tee-shirt.

"…Thanks," she muttered quietly, and began to swipe specks of snow off of her shoulders and shorts. Ash did the same, trying to sweep the already soaked-in wetness off his jeans. When she realized that there was also some snow in her bangs and ponytail, Misty just shook her whole head and body, causing small flurries to drift down lazily to the snow covered ground. Ash watched the crystals cascading around Misty; the scene reminded him of a beautiful Christmas snow globe. When the flurries settled, Ash gradually looked away from Misty and began to gaze around at their location. He had been too busy with other matters to concern himself with anything around him besides the snow, but now he saw what was around him and he was awestruck.

"Wow." Misty looked up and gasped in wonder.

" 'Wow' is right!"

Ash and Misty discovered that they weren't in just any kind of hole; they were in a cave, a giant underground cavern. It was only around thirty feet across, but like a hallway, it stretched out a long way before and behind them. The walls were jagged marble-patterned stone, reaching straight up with a minimum amount of cliff edges. The stony walls were pale gray and white, almost silver, and the settled snow rolled up against the walls like waves in the tide. As if they had planned it, in one motion Ash and Misty turned their faces up to the ceiling. The top of the cavern was rounded like a cathedral, and the long tapering forms of dripping stalactites hung down in a rather threatening manner. Right above the two people, a dark round opening was framed by stalactites. As if it wanted to explain that it was the hole that Ash and Misty had fallen through, a few particles of dust wafted down through the air from the opening.

"That's… high," Ash observed.

"…Yeah," Misty replied. They continued to gaze up at the ceiling in rapture. "…We must have fallen a long way down, so we're obviously really, really far underground."

"Yeah." Ash gazed at Misty until she looked back at him, then added bluntly, "There's no way that we can get back up there. We don't have any items to help us. Remember, Brock said that we didn't have any Escape Ropes."

"We don't have our Pokémon with us either."

"I have mine. Wait! That could work! In fact-"

"No you don't."

"Huh?" Ash glanced down at his Pokéball belt, only to discover that it wasn't there around his waist. For a brief second, Ash took a glance at the snowy ground before realizing where his belt was. After finding his old vest, Ash had taken his belt off so that he could get out of his new vest and put on the old one. Ash was now sure that he never remembered putting his belt back on, so it had to be back at the campsite beside his backpack. _No, no, no, no, no! Grrrr! I can't believe it! Of all the stupid things I've done, this has to be one of the stupidest! One of the most simple and basic rules of training is to have your Pokémon with you at all times! What am I going to do!?_

Misty saw Ash's face screw up in anguish as he tried to make contact with his belt in vain. He looked despairingly at Misty, then looked away quickly, too ashamed to look her in the eye and too scared of seeing Misty enraged at his daft oversight. Misty had, in fact, started to become infuriated at his denseness, until she saw his complete and total misery. She suddenly remembered the concerned and fearful gaze that Ash had given her when she had first woken up. Then, strangely, she calmed down and forced herself to not react violently as she usually did. After a moment, it wasn't hard at all to suffocate her anger. _How can I get so mad at him? I love him, for heaven's sake! Boy, I need to control myself and my stupid temper better._ She had been telling herself that for the longest time, but so far nothing had worked. Now, however, she pledged silently that she would do anything possible to quit being so rough with Ash.

Ash had fallen deeper into anguish after realizing that not only did he not have his Pokémon with him (not even Pikachu), but he also didn't have his backpack or any supplies with him. Literally, all he had were the clothes on his back. And the hat on his head. And his Pokédex in his pocket, but other than that, nothing. Misty actually had less than himself. She didn't have her backpack with her either, and all of her Pokéballs she kept in her backpack. Ash was now downright depressed. He risked a slight glance at his best friend.

"Aw, it's okay," Misty muttered, looking back up at the hole in the ceiling, "We'll figure something out."

Ash gaped at her in disbelief. He was about to ask her if she could repeat that again, to make sure he had heard it right, but decided against risking her blowing up about so-called 'impudence'. He took his luck gratefully and kept his mouth shut, except to say, "Yeah, I guess."

"I mean, don't you think there is another way out of here? There has to be!"

"Yeah," Ash pondered vaguely on the chances of there being an alternate way to get back to the surface of the earth. He decided that the chances were just great enough that it was worth searching for a different way out. "Let's look around a bit… you know, I'm kinda curious about why there's snow in a place like this. Aren't you?"

Misty nodded. Ash looked down the cavern corridor in front of him. It was long. Very long. Ash found he had a feeling in his chest that he always got before something big or important or exciting happened. This made Ash a bit flighty. He took one ordinary step in the snow, leaving an imprint behind. Then he took another, and another, and soon he was keeping a steady, but leaping-over-the-snow, pace. Misty hurried to catch up with him. She stumbled a little bit, but caught herself in time and soon was bounding over the snow alongside Ash. Ash had to admit, the snow was kind of fun. He hadn't expected to see snow again until he got to the next mountain on his journey. Still, Ash was puzzled about the snow being there in this great underground grotto.

"Misty, how do you think this cave got filled with snow? I mean, there's snow everywhere! I haven't seen any uncovered ground yet!"

"Me neither. Well, what are some possibilities?"

"Uh… it could have fallen in through the hole during the winter time, maybe."

"Ash, remember, the hole was covered."

"Maybe it was uncovered in the winter?"

"Perhaps, but how could so much snow get into this place through such a tiny hole and then spread out all this long way? Besides, it probably would have melted by now."

"Oh. Yeah." Ash paused. "Sorry."

"…For what?"

"For the dumb idea."

Misty remembered her pledge, and somehow, it was easier to face this kind of situation a second time. "It wasn't dumb. It was an idea. Ideas can't be dumb because, well… they're ideas. Things that are possible, not always feasible."

"…Thanks." Ash wasn't sure what 'feasible' meant, but he let it go. He was still trying to get over his embarrassment about the whole 'radius' issue.

"Okay, so how else could the snow have gotten here?"

Ash was having a bit of difficulty keeping his sprinting pace. "…Your turn."

"Okay." Misty looked around as they ran along. Suddenly, a flash of yellow, orange, and brown whizzed passed the edge of Misty's vision. "Ash! Wait! There's something there!"

Ash stopped and turned quick enough to catch a glimpse of the cone-shaped thing before it disappeared in a crevice in the stone wall. "It's a Pokémon!" Ash immediately stuck his hand in his pocket to grab his Pokédex, but didn't pull it out. He had seen the Pokémon's picture before, and he gave a valiant effort to remember what it was without having to resort to looking it up. "It's… it's a… oh yeah! It's a Snorunt!"

"A Snorunt? What kind of Pokémon is that?"

"Uh… uh… it's… it's an Ice- type."

"Wow." Misty was impressed. Ash usually just whipped out his Pokédex every time he saw a Pokémon, no matter if he had seen it before or not. "How do you know? Have you seen a Snorunt before?"

"Well, no, but I've been studying my Pokédex a lot lately." Ash had become very upset when he found that Max, an eight year old, knew a lot more Pokémon than he, an experienced trainer and winner of the Orange League, did. Ash then looked through his Pokédex every night before bed, trying to at least put a name and type to every Pokémon he saw, for that was a start. He remembered Snorunt, for he had been studying it only a few days before.

"Wow, Ash, that's rather intelligent of you." Misty was overwhelmed with pride at Ash's initiative to learn about the new (for them at least) Hoenn Pokémon. _Maybe that boy is finally getting some sense. Maturity, maybe? Wait, I'm talking about Ash. Not maturity, but sense at least. But if he has some sense, why hasn't he… why can't he…know how I feel about him?_

Ash was pleased. _A compliment… from Misty? Awesome! That's as rare as a Celebi! _Suddenly, Ash had the feeling that there was something behind him and he turned around. He found himself face to face with the Ice- type Delibird. Wide-eyed, the boy and the bird stared at one another, then in a flash, the Delibird flew up into the maze of stalactites above and disappeared from sight. Ash stood there, a bit stunned for a moment. Then he turned back to Misty.

"Why didn't I try to catch that Delibird?"

Misty shrugged. "I don't- oh, wait, you don't have any Pokéballs with you anyway."

"Oh. Yeah."

"Well- ASH, BEHIND YOU!" He whirled around and saw another Pokémon, this time leaping around on one of the few small cliff edges. Ash had already seen this Ice- type Pokémon before, too.

"It's a Sneasel!" The Sneasel gave the two humans on the ground a quick glance, did a double take, then started hurdling back towards them. A great leap and it departed the cliff, landing before them. With a great battle cry, it swung its right paw at them, both sharp claws extended portentously. Ash and Misty cried out in fright and Misty latched herself onto Ash's back. After the attack failed to strike, all three stood still. The Sneasel stared up at their frightened faces, then suddenly, began to laugh. It doubled over in laughter and almost fell down. Ash and Misty exchanged puzzled glances. Still chuckling, it shook its head and waved the terrified pair away with its still-extended claws, then cantered off down the snowy path, the way Ash and Misty had come.

When the Sneasel had disappeared from sight, Misty commented, "And I thought YOU had a bad sense of humor, Ash!"

"Yeah." Ash nodded. He frowned. "Huh?"

"…Never mind. Let's keep going."

"Okay."

Ash and Misty began trudging through the snow again. Ash was thinking hard about the Pokémon they had just seen. _Hmmm… hey, they were all Ice- types! That's- oh!_ "Misty! I just got an idea about where all of the snow could have come from!"

"Well, what is it?"

"You know how Snorunt, Delibird, and Sneasel are all Ice-types? Well, maybe they are the ones that brought the snow!"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, for instance, if you were a Water- type Pokémon, where would you want to live?"

"In the water, of course! Some Water Pokémon HAVE to live in the water!"

"I know. The same goes with other Pokémon types, too. Ground- types like Sandshrew like to live underground, and Fire- types like Magmar like to live in lava. Most Pokémon like to live in the elements that match their types, so Ice- types should want to live in snow, don't you think?"

"Yeah, but how did the snow get here for the Ice-types to live in it?"

"I was thinking about what you said about the snow not melting. What kind of snow doesn't melt fast?"

"What kind?"

"The Pokémon attacks that produce snow! You know, Powder Snow, Silver Wind, and Blizzard? So-"

"So the Ice Pokémon use the snow-making attacks they know to create all this snow to live in!" Misty exclaimed, catching on. "Because it's an attack, the snow doesn't melt fast, and there's no sun down in a cave to melt it anyway!"

"Exactly."

"So that's where the snow came from!"

"That's got to be it."

"Wow." Misty gazed around at the silvery cavern walls and the bright white attack snow. It was quite beautiful.

Ash grinned. "Pokémon never cease to amaze me."

_Neither do you, Ash. Neither do you._

Though the rest of the forest scarcely had enough undergrowth to cover anyone, the area around the campsite was the exception, being surrounded by thick bushes. The bushes were not good for hiding in the game that was being played, because they were too close to the base.

The bushes were good for hiding if you weren't playing Brace Hide-And-Seek.

A golden charm sticking out of the top of a bush glinted in the setting sun's light. Slowly, the charm rose up, revealing black-rimmed ears. Then, in a risky move, Meowth stuck his whole head out of the top of the bush. He glanced around carefully at the set-up camp before making a noise.

"All clear, you's guys," he muttered. A second later, Jesse stuck her head up from the bushes to Meowth's right, and James appeared a moment later to his left. The three surveyed the empty campsite.

"It's empty," James stated wisely. Jesse rolled her eyes.

"When I's said 'all clear', I meant 'all clear'," Meowth retorted.

"Well…" James trailed off lamely, and sighed.

"It needs to be clear if we're going to go steal their stuff," Jesse said matter-of-factly. She got onto her knees, so that the whole top of her body was sticking out of the bush. James hastily copied her.

Meowth put his paws on the top of the bush and pushed up, to get a better view. " 'Wonder where the twerps went."

Jesse crossed her arms and grinned a wicked smile. "I don't care where they are as long as they don't come back anytime soon. I can't wait to see the looks on their faces when they see that their stuff's disappeared!"

James gave her a concerned look out of the corner of his emerald eyes. His shoulders slumped. "Jess, what about Pikachu?"

"What about him?" She answered, unperturbed, "We can't steal Pikachu if he's not here."

"Oh."

"Come on." Jesse clambered out of the foliage and walked into the twerps' camp, brushing dirt off of her short white skirt. James stood up to follow, but tripped on a tree root and fell face down to the ground. Meowth leapt out of the bushes and used the back of James' head as a landing pad. He walked off to follow Jesse without an apology, but James hadn't expected one. Such was the way of Team Rocket.

"Hmmm… interesting," Jesse commented with a critical eye to the camp. James finally got up and hurried to catch up with his partner. Meowth sat down, then curled up next to the warm embers in the campfire, fully content to take advantage of their rival's temporary home before robbing them. Such was also the way of Team Rocket.

"This is warm," Meowth purred. The two humans ignored him.

James sauntered over and plopped down on one of the log benches by the fire. He glanced over at the stack of bowls beside the log, and after a time, picked up the one on top, which was still half-full (it had been Misty's). He gingerly sniffed the soup it contained. It was still fairly warm. James' stomach growled and he winced. Like Ash, James was pretty much always hungry. It wasn't his or his group's fault that their boss didn't pay them enough to buy enough food. Like anyone else, they worked hard to get a promotion, even though they always failed. James had gotten used to failing, and he accepted it, knowing that the twerps' Pokémon were far stronger than theirs. He even figured that it might be shameful to actually get something bad right, thus ruining their perfect failing record. He didn't say this, though. Anytime he mentioned it to Jesse, the one person he felt he could talk to, she would yell at him for being pessimistic and whack him on the head with her fan. That was one thing that James admired about Jesse; she was always optimistic about catching Pikachu.

James picked up a spoon from the pile beside the dishes, and began to eat the rest of the soup in Misty's bowl. Jesse glanced over at him. She was hungry, too, and she saw that there was another bowl that was half-full, but she didn't go over and pick it up. She would do anything to keep from giving away that James had had a brilliant idea before she had. She knew that James wouldn't boast or tease or anything, but she didn't want to give satisfaction to Meowth. She glanced over at the Pokémon. Meowth was asleep. Jesse rolled her eyes again. _What a team I'm in,_ she pondered, shaking her head. After a moment, she glanced back and forth between her two partners and thought, _and I love it. I wouldn't change it for anything in the world._ Her eyes settled on her best friend and she watched James eat for a little while, until he looked up and saw her watching him. She looked away. Both their faces tinged the slightest pink.

Ambling over to the sleeping bags all in a row, Jesse found their order to be interesting. She had memorized which twerp had which sleeping bag, so that they would be able to find which sleeping bag Pikachu slept in (Ash's) on night missions. She saw that the Main Twerp's sleeping bag was next to the Main Female Twerp's sleeping bag. She also noticed that the Second Female Twerp's sleeping bag wasn't next to the Main Twerp's anymore. Jesse smiled, and for once, not maliciously.

"Hey, James, come look at this," she called, but not loud enough to wake up Meowth. A moment later, he appeared at her side, the bowl of soup still in his hand.

"What?" First, she pulled a leaf out of James' hair from when they had been hiding in the bush. Then she gestured to the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp's sleeping bags, side by side. James knew who owned each bed, too. He perceived what she had intended for him to see, also noting the fact that those two particular sleeping bags were set closer together than any of the other ones. He smiled, too. They grinned at each other.

" 'Knew it," Jesse smirked.

"Yup."

"How long do you think it will take?"

"I don't know. It can't take too much longer, or Meowth will call off the bet."

"Meowth can't call off a bet," Jesse said irritably, "He accepted."

"I know, but you know he'd figure out a way."

"Yeah. James, what all exactly did Meowth gamble on? I forg- I don't think I heard everything."

"That the Main Twerp wouldn't love either of 'em, or the Second Female Twerp would tell him that she loves him, or the Main Twerp would say he loves the Second Female Twerp," James rambled off. "We bet that either the Main Twerp would tell the Main Female Twerp that he loves her or the Main Female Twerp would finally tell the Main Twerp that she loves him."

As Team Rocket had been on every stretch of Ash's journey, trying to Pokénap Pikachu, they knew the twerps about as well as they knew each other. Though they wouldn't admit it, Jesse, James, and Meowth were all pretty fond of them, using the 'twerp' nicknames to refer to them, even though they knew their real names and James insisted that their real names were easier to say. Being close to the twerps, they saw how close the twerps were to each other, and figured it was only a matter of time before the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp (a.k.a. the Main Twerp's Girlfriend) got together. When there became a Second Female Twerp, there were many controversies among Team Rocket as to if the first girl twerp would get the Main Twerp or not. James, positive about the two original twerps' bond, insisted that the Main Twerp would end up with the Main Female Twerp, while Meowth found the chances better with the Second Female Twerp, as she didn't threaten to beat up the Main Twerp daily. So they had made a bet, each gambling one hundred dollars on the outcome, and somehow, Jesse got dragged into it and ended up on James' side, even though the Main Female Twerp had called her some particularly nasty names in rage in the past.

"So Meowth has more chances."

"We have better odds."

"I hope you're right, James. I need the cash."

James took another bite of his soup. "Of course I'm right. When have I ever been wrong about something that involves our paychecks?"

"All right, I'm thinking of one word," Jesse began sarcastically. James knew what was coming and he looked away. "…Magikarp?" He flinched.

"O…kay. Um, have I ever been wrong about something involving… love?"

Jesse couldn't think of anything right off the bat. "I guess not."

"There. Don't worry. We'll win."

"Don't you all count'cha Torchic 'fore they hatches." Jesse and James heard a shuffling of paws and turned to see Meowth standing behind them, arms crossed and shaking his head.

James became indignant. Setting the bowl down, he clenched his fists heatedly. "We're not! I just know what I'm talking about!"

" 'Hope so, Jimmy."

"Speaking of Torchic…" Jesse glanced over at the Second Female Twerp's sleeping bag where her side pouch backpack was laying. She strolled over to it, knelt down at the bag, reached in, and pulled out two Pokéballs, Torchic and Beautifly. "They may not be hatching yet, but some are already ready for the taking."

"Yeah!" Meowth cried enthusiastically. He strode over to the Cooking Twerp's bag and reached around inside for his five Pokémon's Pokéballs.

"Hey! Over here, you all!" Jesse and Meowth looked up. James was kneeling over the Main Twerp's sleeping bag. Dropping their stolen cargo, the two rushed over to see James' find.

Jesse put a hand on his shoulder. "Let me see!"

"Look!" James held the item up. Jesse and Meowth gasped.

"It's-"

"The Main Twerp's Pokéball belt," Jesse finished. All four of the Pokéballs were there, indicating the only Pokémon that could even possibly be with the Main Twerp was Pikachu.

"Geesh," Meowth snorted, "I thought the kid never went anywhere withouts his faithful Pokémon."

"Isn't one of the most simple and basic rules of training is to have your Pokémon with you at all times?" James inquired.

"Maybe he's got issues," Jesse suggested impassively. Stuff like that didn't interest Jesse a lot. She walked away and sat down on one of the log benches. She made the mistake of sitting next to the not-empty soup bowls. Her stomach growled, but no one heard it but herself. She sighed. "Come on, let's split. I'm tired and I need my beauty sleep."

James gave her a concerned look out of the corner of his emerald eyes. His shoulders slumped. "Jess, what about stealing all of their stuff?"

"What about it?" She answered, unperturbed, "I only want to steal Pikachu. That's all that matters."

"Oh." James groaned slightly. Jesse's actions were about as predictable as an Eevee's evolution. Even after all of the years he had spent with her, even before they had joined Team Rocket, James had never quite figured out how she could change her mind so quickly.

"Yeah, let's head back to the balloon. We have to set up our own camp, 'fores it gets too dark to be seeing," Meowth added. He looked longingly at the twerps' campfire. "We gotta get some wood, 'cause I'm not sleeping without a fire for warmth and protection."

"Meowth, it's summertime."

"So what?"

"Come on, I said!" Jesse commanded with a little more force. She got up, and without a backwards glance, strolled out of the campsite. James and Meowth were soon right on her heels.

With a backwards glance at the Main Twerp's and the Main Female Twerp's sleeping bags, James whispered to Meowth, "We're going to win that bet!" A frustrated Jesse whipped around, grabbed James' hand, and proceeded to jerk him away from the campground. Meowth sneered.

"Not a chance."

"We are!"

"No 'ya not, Jimmy boy!"

"Ooof!" Ash disappeared into an enormous snow pile that he had been trying to jump over. Misty watched as he struggled to get into an upright position again. He scuffled with the maddening cold white powder. _Gosh, he looks so helpless, _Misty mused sadly. Taking pity on the boy she loved, she trudged over to the heap of snow in which he was stuck, shyly grabbed him under his arms, and hauled him out. Ash sat panting for a moment from the effort of the mêlée. "Thanks, Mist." Misty shivered happily at what she had come to hope was a term of endearment.

"You're welcome." Trying to act casual, though her heart was thumping madly, Misty silently offered Ash her hand to help him stand. Ash was fatigued, and appreciatively grabbed Misty's hand. She pulled him up, and he finally got his feet flat on the ground. With his right hand, he idly brushed snowflakes off of his vest. With his left hand, he still held Misty's right hand. Ash didn't notice. Misty did. It was the second instance in a short space of time that those two particular hands were clinging onto each other, and Misty couldn't help but suppose this might be a positive sign. _Geesh, Ash, why don't you confuse me a little more, huh? What the heck is running through that mind of yours?_

_ I can understand why the Ice Pokémon want snow, but why so much? How can they even walk? _Ash looked up, and something ahead caught his interest. He immediately bolted off to investigate and Misty was yanked along by the hand, though she didn't mind in the very least. They got to Ash's target and Ash grinned.

"Cool! A stalactite!" He touched the tip of the sparkling cone sticking out of the ground cautiously.

Misty didn't want to correct him, but she couldn't help it. "It's not a stalactite. It's a stalagmite. Stalagmites are the ones that come out of the ground. Stalactites are those ones on the ceiling up there." Mimicking Ash, she timidly touched the tip of the stalagmite with her free hand.

"Oh." Ash studied his murky likeness in the glassy surface. "I always mix them up."

"Most people do. I do a lot."

"Hmmm…" Ash blinked as light reflected into his eyes from off of the stalagmite. Then an uncanny thought entered his mind. "… Uh, Misty, this is a cave, right?"

Misty sweatdropped. "Yeah, Ash. This is a cave."

"Well… then why is it light in here? I mean, where is the light coming from?"

Misty wondered if some of Ash's denseness had rubbed off on her because he was still holding onto her hand. _Why didn't I think of that before? _She gazed around at her shimmering environment. _How is there light for us to see and for everything to sparkle in?_ The more she looked around, the more she noticed about the mysterious illumination. For one, the light was pretty much white, rather than the kind of slightly yellow-tinted light that came from the sun outside. _It's like it's artificial…_ "That's it!"

"What?"

"This is artificial light!"

"Like from lamps?"

"No. Now Ash, you should know what kind of artificial light is used in caves! Flash!"

"Huh- oh! You mean Flash, the Pokémon attack?"

"That's the answer. Some of the Pokémon here must be able to use Flash!" Misty was excited that she had figured the answer out. "They use it a lot so that they can see where they are, too!"

"Wow!" Ash was awed at the Pokémon's intelligence, and Misty's cleverness, "The Pokémon here are so smart to build their own environment so well, with all the snow and light and all."

"AND," Misty added sneakily, "Flash doesn't melt snow!"

Ash giggled at Misty's absurdity. "Come on. We better get going." Misty nodded. He headed off down his snowy pathway, leading Misty along. He hadn't let go of her hand because he didn't want to fall into another snow bank and have to struggle with it again. Also, it was easier to keep up with one another. Suddenly, he felt the snow under his feet sag and his body automatically braced itself until the snow compacted enough to support his weight. However, it didn't compact; it just kept sagging.

Ash was about to tell Misty about how weird the snow was, when the snow vanished under his feet and he found, for a fourth of a split second, that he was standing in midair, just like before. With a yelp, Ash plummeted straight down, and Misty, caught one hundred percent off guard, was dragged through the hole, too. They fell, but only for a few seconds before they hit snow. Ash landed on his stomach again, and gave the briefest movement to push himself up, only to be struck down again an instant later by Misty falling on top of him. With a groan, she struggled to raise the front of her body up and look up above her. Ash raised his head, too, so that the top of his head was lightly touching Misty's chin. They stared up to the ceiling and defiantly stared at the hole through which they had just fallen and through which a shower of fine snowflakes were still falling. Ash sighed. _Another cave? Even farther underground?_ He shook his head. It would be even harder to get out of the caves now.

"Oh, boy."

"Oh, boy."

Poochyena whined softly at his master's gloomy voice. The Dark Pokémon didn't like where he was and he dug his sharp claws faintly deeper into the back of Max's shirt. Max could feel the claws prick his skin and he winced. Max didn't like where he was either, but instead because it was too open. Brock and May could easily see him if they looked straight up.

Max wiggled a bit, trying to get to a more comfortable position where he was laying. His knees gripped the side of the tree limb tightly. Max took a quick peek around the side of the branch at the ground below. It wasn't too far down. He felt his glasses sneakily try to slip to the end of his nose, and he jerked his head back up sharply to get them repositioned right. Poochyena whimpered gently.

"It's okay, Poochyena," Max murmured soothingly. "We're safe. We're not going to fall." The tree, as if to express its personal great love of irony, gave a slight fracturing sound. Max froze, then gave a quick glance over his shoulder at the trunk. The bough he was clinging to had a slight fissure in the area where it branched off from the rest of the tree. "Please no." Max was considering whether or not to get to a securer branch, when he heard muffled voices coming his direction. He stayed still, praying that Poochyena would instinctively be still and silent, too.

"… They've got to be around here somewhere, Brock. Max can't stray from his little 'two hundred foot radius', even if he's the only one who knows what a radius is, and Ash and Misty are too big to really hide behind anything around here." Max could see May chatting and dragging Brock through the foliage, heading towards his tree. May had finally grabbed Brock's hand after Brock had explained to her that dragging someone by their wrist wasn't very humane. May glanced back and forth as she went, but thankfully not up. Max waited tensely. He finally saw Pikachu and Togepi tailing the two humans. _If they catch us, at least we won't be the searchers next time. _To Max's horror, May paused to let the Pokémon catch up… right in front of Max's tree.

Max heard a splintering sound. He didn't dare look backwards to see how deep the crevice in the limb was now. Max looked over the side of the branch at May. She didn't look up. A moment too late, Max noticed that his glasses were on the tip of his nose and were sliding off rapidly. He made a wild grab for them, but his glasses fell to the ground, into some thick grass. At the tiny sound of the impact, May and Brock glanced around blankly at the soil for the source. Almost straight above them, Max and Poochyena's branch bobbed up and down for a moment from Max's movements. Then, there was a resounding SNAP! "WHAHH-" THUMP! The whole branch, Max, and Poochyena ended up in a heap at Brock and May's feet. Max's head was spinning. He couldn't see without his glasses. Poochyena began to howl loudly in his ear.

Max vaguely heard a weird sound over his Pokémon's ruckus. Letting go of the broken branch, with Poochyena still on his back, Max dragged his hand through the grass. He luckily found his glasses and put them back on. They weren't broken. He glanced up at May and Brock. May was hysterical with laughter and was doubled over. Brock had a concerned look on his face, but his mouth kept twitching, as if it wanted to break into a grin. "You okay?" Max nodded and glared at his sister.

Through all of her hilarity, May managed to gasp out, "Max… I think… you need… contacts… instead of… glasses."

Max sighed. "Whatever. Let's find Ash and Misty. It shouldn't be too hard."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

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YAK! I finally got them into the mysterious cave! Mwahhhhhh- wait… I love Ash and Misty. Why did I trap them in a cave!? …Well, you know what they say, "You hurt the ones you love" (hysterical laughter on my part)! …Okay. ANYWAY… This was pretty fun to write, 'specially Team Rocket. Yes, I know, I kinda was biased on James, but he's a good guy, so there. Well, I hope this was AAML-ish enough to hold you until the next chapter. Once more, please, even if you reviewed before, review again, and I'll love you as much as Misty loves Ash…

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 3's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter. (HINT: This chapter's title is NOT from a Pokémon Movie CD, but still a Pokémon CD.)


	4. The Days & Nights Are Nice & Icy Clear

First off, I'd like to say I'm sorry to all of my loyal fans and readers for the long-ish delay in chapter postings. I wanted to write my story The Tennis Racket, (As In Commotion, Not Equipment) for summer vacation and it's hard to concentrate on two stories at a time. By the way, if you love AAML, you might like that story. Anyway, this chapter is longer than the others, so I hope it makes up for the postponed posting. About Chapter Three's title, the line, "…hand in hand we walk as one…" is from _The Game_, from the Totally Pokémon CD. Congratulations to Sparklewolf (for the third time), Chibimatchmaker (for the second time), and Metal Mewtwo for getting the chapter title correct. Hopefully this next one is a challenge… One more thing I shall ask of you, great reviewer. I have been getting a lot of "spoilers" in my reviews, and I thought I might ask if you could please not send me any more. I'm kinda an anti-spoiler person myself. I obviously like to create my own future, as you can tell from this story. Anyway, I'd appreciate it if you could just review. (I know about Togepi anyway.) Thanks, and please tell me what you think afterwards! Enjoy!

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**CHAPTER 4: …The Days & Nights Are Nice & Icy Clear…**

* * *

"…Uh, Misty?"

"Yes, Ash?"

"Uh, could you get off me? I can't breathe." Blushing madly, Misty crawled off of her gasping friend, a.k.a. landing pad, and into the frigid snow. He sat up, readjusting his hat. Ash glanced up at the stalactite-rimmed hole above them. "This place is getting weirder. Now we're really far underground."

"How are we going to get out now?"

"No idea." Misty fought her strong urge to yell at Ash, to argue with him, to blame him for what was happening. Such instincts die hard. _I promised, I promised, I promised! I promised myself that I wouldn't lose my stupid temper with him anymore, and I won't! I won't, I won't! …This isn't like before, when it was just you, him, and Brock. You can't just… dawdle around anymore. Now you have competition! You have to fight May for him now! You can't keep trying to hide yourself from him. You'll just be giving May an easy victory… Come on, Misty, you're a fierce competitor, just like he is. Hitting someone over the head with a mallet is an out-of-style way to get attention. Just be his friend. Stop wanting to yell at him, for Ho-oh's sake!_

Out of the corner of his eye, Ash saw Misty's face screw up in silent frustration. He became concerned. "Misty?"

Misty jerked her head up distractedly. "What?"

" 'You okay?"

"…Yeah." Ash, looking relieved, clambered out of the snow and stood up. Misty followed suit. Her bare legs and her hands were beginning to get a little bit numb from all of the crawling about in the snow. She rubbed her hands together, trying to generate some warmth for her frozen fingers.

"Gosh, this tunnel looks almost the same as the last one!" Ash cried out, gazing upon the snow piled ground, protruding stalactites and stalagmites, and shimmering hoary ramparts. It looked about the same to Misty, too. "Do you think that there could be more levels even farther underground than this?"

Misty shivered nervously. "I hope not. We could just keep falling down and down forever, and never get out."

Ash shivered, too, at the bleak notion. "What do you think the chances are of there being another way out now?"

"Uh… slim."

"Maybe… maybe further down the tunnel there's a place where we could climb up the walls and get onto a ledge… From the ledge we could get back up through that last hole," reasoned Ash.

"Ash, how many times in that plan is it likely that you, or me, or both of us, could fall?" Misty responded critically, crossing her arms. Ash stopped and seriously considered the answer for a moment. Misty sighed in annoyance and shook her head.

"A lot," he finally answered, and thinking about the first hole, added, "But we've fallen off and down things a lot higher before and not gotten hurt in the snow. It's the only idea I've got. Do you have an idea?" He knew that she wouldn't.

She didn't. "…Okay, then let's get looking for a ledge or something."

"Hmm." Ash nodded once, his face full of determination. Doggedly, he started out into the unknown grotto, trekking slowly through the thickly packed flurries. Misty followed him tenaciously, like an obedient Growlithe pup.

Time seemed to drag by as if a Slowpoke had latched onto it and refused to let go. Everything was quiet; there was no sound at all besides the muffled sound of the two's footsteps. There was no sight or sign of Pokémon down there, no tracks or anything, yet it was impossible that none lived there because it was covered in attack-made snow. Ash found it likely that the Snorunt and Delibird had informed the other Ice Pokémon of the lost trespassers, and so they kept away. Misty decided to herself that if they saw another Pokémon, she would try to ask it for help… unless it was the Sneasel again.

Ash concentrated on walking, only glancing up now and then to see if the cliffs were rising up any closer to the ground. There wasn't much else to do except think, so that's what Ash did. He glanced back at Misty, who was quite a few paces behind him, and was using his imprints to walk in. She didn't see him looking at her. Her arms were crossed tightly to her chest and her head was down, mouth opened slightly. Her marine eyes glistened almost sadly or desperately. Ash unconsciously cocked his head. She was in deep thought, obviously. _She's been thinking about something a lot today. I wish she had told me what it was! I wonder if that's what she's thinking about right now. I bet it is! Maybe I should ask her again. _

"Misty?" She glanced up. Ash took a deep breath and continued in a more forceful tone than before, "What are you so upset about?"

Misty's heart jumped to her throat in panic. She had hoped that Ash would give up on asking her that question, but he looked dead set on knowing the answer. Ash Ketchum never gave up on anything easily. Misty suddenly realized that Ash obviously hadn't believed the lie she had told him when they were in the woods. A strange jolt in her body begged her to tell Ash her worry, her fear, her hope. However, that feeling had always resided in her, as long as she could remember. It had now only intensified a little, but Misty was too used to fighting it back down to let it grow anymore than it had in the past hour or two.

Her silence had been too long. Ash stopped and looked straight into her face, his gloved hands stuck coldly into his vest pockets, his shoulders slightly hunched. "Mist?" Misty stopped a few yards away from him, and slowly looked up into his piercing eyes. "What has made you so upset? Please tell me. I want to know. I can help, whatever it is."

_He looks so determined._ "I-" For a split second, Misty decided to tell him everything, every secret she had about him, right there in the middle of the snow. But the split second passed, and Misty became, as she thought, reasonable again. She shoved the desire away. "I-" She didn't want to lie, but it seemed necessary. "I- It's nothing. Nothing to be worried about. I shouldn't even be worried about it myself." _What a lie._ "In fact… In fact, I'm not even worried about it anymore anyway." _What another lie._ She raised her head up a bit more and tired to smile reassuringly, but the smile looked rather forced, as it truly was.

Ash was somewhat dumbfounded, to tell the truth. _She still didn't tell me. I can't believe it. She still didn't tell me._ Ash didn't degrade her for lying. He just realized that the problem had to be something very, very personal to her. He decided to quit prying and let her be. If she decided to tell him on her own, great. If not… _Maybe I could try to be more personal with her, make her feel more comfortable around me._ _Then, she might decide to tell me. _Ash found hope for this in the fact that they were alone. It was a lot more comfortable for him to talk to her, and vice versa, without having Brock staring at Ash with his sly I-know-something-you-don't-know grin.

Misty saw Ash nod slightly, then start back to the walking. After a few paces, he paused, and glanced back around. He cocked his head and smiled warmly at her. " 'You coming?" he grinned. Misty suddenly smiled, for real this time. She wasn't entirely sure that he believed this lie either, but it seemed he wasn't going to pry further, which made her feel better. She giggled, and ran to catch up with him. She almost tripped in the snow but caught herself, making both herself and Ash laugh. In higher spirits, they trudged through the snow side by side. It seemed easier than it had been, now that Ash had, figuratively, 'broken the ice'.

"You know," Ash commented as they continued on, "it's so weird how huge this place is."

"I know," Misty agreed, "This big, totally white cavern, all underground."

Ash chuckled slightly. "I guess the Ice Pokémon down here don't like to decorate very much. Very plain place, this is."

Misty joked along with him. "Maybe they just like white a whole lot." They both giggled.

"That, or there's no paint store nearby," Ash added stupidly. Misty snickered, then both began to laugh at their absurdity. "Geesh," Ash tittered, "This cold air can sure make 'ya crazy!"

"Are you sure it's the cold air?" Misty teased him slyly. Ash gave her a scornful look. She laughed.

"Oh, ha, ha," Ash responded sarcastically, but he was smiling.

"I was thinking," Misty began, as she contemplated the whiteness of the cavern, "If we aren't careful, we could be lost in here a long time. There are no landmarks or anything to show us where we've been or where we came from."

"Well, there are our footprints."

"What if a Pokémon messes them up? Or adds more snow on top?"

Ash thought. He shrugged. "Your right. We could get lost easy."

"With all the luck we've ever had on navigation," Misty muttered, "It's easier to get lost in some woods or other than it is to be tracked by Team Rocket."

Ash snorted. "You're right about that… you know, we haven't seen those guys for a while now. Isn't it about time for another Team Rocket attack?"

"They're way overdue."

Ash suddenly gasped. "What if, while I'm gone, they try to steal Pikachu!? He's out there all by himself! And what if they try to steal all of our stuff!?"

"Don't worry," Misty reassured him, "They might think about stealing our stuff, but Pikachu's the only thing that matters to them. I'm sure Pikachu could hold them off, anyway. He's strong enough."

"Yeah," Ash said, still a bit worried, "Well, it's not like Jesse, James, and Meowth are just going to show up in this cavern all of a sudden." Suddenly, they both stopped. They glanced at each other, then around at the snow banks and jagged walls. It was silent. Nothing. Ash breathed a sigh of relief. "That was close."

"Yeah," Misty agreed in thankfulness, "That would have been a perfect cue."

Ash nodded. Suddenly, something high up on the silvery marble-patterned wall to his left caught his attention. "Hey, Mist! What's that?"

"What's what?"

"There!" Ash ran towards the wall, pointing at the 'something'. Misty followed. Right below it, they both stopped and gazed up, but it was so high up on the wall, that it was hard to focus their eyes on it. As best as they could tell, it looked like something had scratched the walls, except the scratches weren't random; they were neat and in rows.

"Words?" Misty wondered out loud, "Is that some kind of writing up there?"

"Looks like it," Ash responded, "Someone has definitely carved some words into the walls up there. A message, maybe?"

"It could be a song, possibly. Or how about a poem?" Misty added her suggestions. "But how on earth could someone get that high into the air to carve it on the wall?" Ash shrugged. He backed up a few paces, then all the way to the opposite wall, to get a better view of the words. "Anything?"

Ash shook his head. "Nothing. They're just too high up and too small to read."

"Errr!" Misty was frustrated. "Oh, forget that, then!" She stomped off through the billowing snow. Ash quickly scrambled to tread beside her. He didn't want to be left alone. "I mean, really! That is so stupid, writing something so no one can read it! What if it was a warning!? No one would ever know! Really! How dense can you get?"

Ash shrugged absentmindedly. He had already thought of something else. _"…A warning…"_

_A warning?_

A warning.

_Someone should have warned me how boring this game can be after you're caught,_ Max thought irritably. Max struggled to get a firm grip around Poochyena's belly, so he could have one free hand to adjust his glasses with. He quickly replaced his arm around the whining wolf pup after pushing his spectacles back up the bridge of his nose. Poochyena whimpered sadly, begging his master to set him down so he could romp around, but the Sacred Laws of Brace Hide-And-Seek completely forbid this dreadful act. Max sighed. He was as jaded as his Pokémon.

"ASH! MISTY!" Brock called out, his free hand cupped to his mouth to amplify his voice. "WHERE ARE YOU GUYS?" He sighed wearily, and let his hand drop to his side. _I never knew they were this good at hiding. _

"YOU TWO CAN COME OUT NOW!" May shouted into the thin, tall trees around them. There was no answer. "YOU WON THE GAME, ALREADY! COME ON OUT!"

"This is boring," Max muttered darkly from his place in the back of the line the group was walking in. Poochyena gave a short howl of agreement.

"Well, Max," Brock replied over his shoulder, "It's not our fault that Ash and Misty won't figure out that the game is over, and that they won, so they can show themselves now."

"Yeah, well, who insisted on playing this game in the first place, huh?" May spouted to him roughly. He glared at her until she turned away from him, then stuck out his tongue at her. There was a pause, then, "I saw that, Max!"

Max was flabbergasted. "Huh! How did you? Your back was turned!"

May was chuckling. "I didn't see anything, but I guessed you would do something, and you did, because you just confessed to it!" Brock couldn't help a laugh at May's shrewdness. Pikachu, who was in the middle of the line with Togepi, giggled. Max scowled, and muttered darkly under his breath.

The line walked in silence for a while, their eyes peeled for a sign of the last two hiders. There was only the forest around them. They marched on. At first, they had heard the calling of Taillow, and Pidgey, and Swablu, and occasionally a Spearow or two, in the tops of the trees, out of sight. Now, Brock was beginning to hear the rough sound of a Noctowl call. _It's getting darker,_ Brock thought worriedly, _and there's no sign of either Ash or Misty._ _Where could they possibly be?_ Brock bit his lip in concern. He always felt responsible for the safety and well-being of everyone in the group, as he was the oldest of them all. He especially felt accountable for Ash and Misty's security, after living with them for such a long time and seeing all of the things that could happen to them (and himself). _Great, now what do I do!?_

"At this rate," Max was ranting to himself out loud, "We'll not have time for another round of Hide-And-Seek!"

"Who'd want to play another round now!?" May answered, just as Brock replied, "We won't have time anyway."

"Why not?" Max questioned Brock's answer and ignored his sister.

"Because it's dark!" May snapped before Brock could begin. Max purposefully stared at Brock so that he could answer for himself.

"Because… it's dark," Brock agreed. Max sighed. May smirked. Brock sweatdropped and shook his head. _Just like Ash and Misty. Always fighting because you care, because you love. Humph. Where are you two? Ash? Misty? …It's not like you all to run off or something… wait. Run off? …No, surely not. You couldn't have told him already, Misty, could 'ya? …No, Ash wouldn't have left Pikachu, and you wouldn't have left Togepi. …Are you all in trouble? Is it… Team Rocket or something? Are you following us for fun, or something? Are you back at camp? Are you lost?…lost? … LOST! _ Brock glanced around. Where were they? All the trees, by now, looked just exactly alike.

"Ooo, I don't like the dark so much," May muttered, glancing around. Her gloved fingers were cutting into Brock's hand painfully. Brock winced. "I mean, not just the dark itself, but the woods at night… brrr!"

"Um, do you think," Brock began, with an edge of pain to his voice, "that we could drop hands because the game is over now?"

"Okay," May said simply, and let go of his hand. Brock immediately began to massage his sore palm with his other hand. Poochyena wiggled out of Max's grasp and ran around in circles a few times. Instead of walking away, Togepi trilled and motioned for Pikachu to give her a piggyback ride. Pikachu sighed and leaned down so she could get on.

Brock was about to ask if anyone knew where they were, when Max reached for his belt and pulled off his PokéNav. He turned it on and began to do something with it, pushing buttons here and there. Brock stopped walking and went over to Max's side. As if Max had read his mind, he showed Brock a digital map of Hoenn on the screen and began to zoom in over Route 119. "See, Brock, I was just thinking that we outta check where we are, so we don't get lost or too far away from our camp. See?" He pointed to a dot in the middle of the screen. "That's us." He pointed to another dot a bit farther off. "That's our camp." He punched a few buttons, and a circle appeared around the two dots. "See, we're still within a two hundred foot radius of our camp."

May was looking at the map over Max's shoulder. It made no sense to her, but if Max could read it, that was fine. "Hey, Max! How does it know where we are?"

"Well, it can track itself, obviously!" Max explained, as if this should be obvious to even the most unintelligent person.

"Well, how does it know where our camp is, Mr. I-Know-Everything?" May asked, a bit annoyed.

"Because," Max said, as if explaining to a two-year-old, "I typed in our latitude and longitude when we were back at camp, so it would know."

"Wow," Brock exclaimed, impressed, as May tried to work this information out, "That sure beats every map I've ever tried to read!" Max smiled proudly.

"Latitude, longitude," May muttered irritably, "What's the difference? It's just like stalagmites and stalactites!"

"What do they have to do with anything, hmm?" Max wanted to know.

May looked flustered. "Well, nothing, it's just, how are you supposed to tell them apart?"

"By their name," Max drawled.

Brock sighed and said, "Cut it out, you two," before they could get started. May turned away in a huff. Max continued to do some kind of something with his PokéNav. Brock glanced around at the whole group. Pikachu, with Togepi on his back, and Poochyena were in a kind of huddle, whispering in Poke-speech. May had stalked off and was leaning against a tree, her back to them. Brock gazed off into the forest. Whispering sadly, he said, "Ash. Misty. Where are you?"

"I wish I knew where we are."

"Well, yeah," Misty replied to Ash's bleak statement, "So do I, but there's no pointing in wishing something like that without Jirachi or an Unown around."

"Yeah." They had left the carving in the wall behind and continued up the cavern corridor. Now, Ash and Misty were standing still, trying to figure out what to do. They hadn't seen any more Pokémon, or landmarks, or anything except snow. The snow came up way past Ash's shoes, soaking his jeans a third of the way up to his knees. Ash glanced over at Misty's legs. The snow was rubbing numbingly against her bare skin. Her legs were shaking a little bit. Ash glanced up. Her arms were crossed in what seemed a stern appearance, but this was only to cover up the fact that she was trying to warm herself. Her mouth was closed determinedly, but from the way her jaw was moving, he could tell that her teeth were chattering. Between her shorts and sleeveless shirt, she was dressed for anything except snow. "Hey, Misty?"

"Hmm?" Misty twitched as the snow began to sting her legs.

"You look awful cold," Ash muttered sympathetically. Misty looked up sharply. She had been trying her best to cover up any signs that she was freezing to death. She didn't want to look weak in front of anyone, especially Ash.

"Uh… just a little bit, I guess." Ash, smiling an exasperated smile, gave her the most critical look he could muster when he felt anything but critical. Misty looked away. _No fooling him on anything today._ "Okay, maybe a lot. …Okay, I'm freezing, but I'll be okay. We've traveled through temperatures a lot colder than these before."

"Well, yes, but you've always had your blanket or jacket with you!"

Misty waved the exclamation away with one hand. "I'll be okay. Hopefully we can get out of this place soon, and then it won't matter if I was cold or not."

"You could get sick from the cold," Ash retorted, trying to get a step ahead of her each time she replied, so he would be able to prove his point.

Misty didn't really have an answer to this one. She shrugged, and crossed her arms a little tighter. "Nothing we can do about that, huh?"

Ash felt helpless. Just like Ash wanted to know what was worrying her so he could help, he wanted to do something to help her stay warm. If he had stopped to think about it, he wouldn't be able to say why he was so adamant about helping her; he just was. However, Ash was too busy thinking about ways to help to think of why, anyway. He hated to see her as uncomfortable as she looked. Unlike her, Ash wasn't uncomfortable in the cold cavern, as he had on long jeans, gloves, a hat, his vest…

_My vest!_ Ash thought suddenly. _Duh, Ketchum! She's right, you ARE pretty dense._ Ash immediately began to slip off his white-collared blue vest, the only thing Ash had that might help. He realized that his vest wouldn't help too awful much, it being short-sleeved and rather thin, and it certainly wouldn't help keep her neck or legs warm, but it was the best he could do. Ash figured that it would be the right thing to do, too, after making his pledge to make her more comfortable around himself.

Misty wasn't expecting what happened next; she had been silently gazing around at the snowy grotto and wondering how much longer it could possibly go on. Suddenly, she felt something soft being laid gently over her shoulders. Automatically, her fingers reached up and grabbed the white collar, bringing it to her eyes to observe the mysterious object. In question, she turned her head to see where the object had come from. Ash's fingers were just letting go of the vest when Misty's eyes found him. _His vest._ She looked back down at the garment draped carefully over her shoulders. She realized why Ash was so fond of the vest, then. It seemed to fit her just right, almost tailor-made, a part of her body, like her hair. Holding onto the collar edges so that it wouldn't slide off her shoulders, Misty glanced back at Ash, who was still standing behind her.

It was simply the most gentlemanly thing Ash could ever do.

Ash was blushing after realizing how meager his offering to her was. Misty, however, blushed at the sight of Ash blushing at her. _Oh, gosh, what is he thinking? Ash Ketchum, you are the most uncomplicated yet confusing person I've ever known. Why did you just do that? Are you… flirting with me? Or… gosh, why would you even do that anyway? Unless… Oh! Now I know why he did it! He wants me to stay warm, and that's all he has to give me! Oh my gosh, that is about the sweetest thing I've ever seen! Oh, but Ash! Do you even now how sweet that is? Oh gosh… "_Ash," Misty said slowly, trying to find words to say while blocking her thoughts, "You don't have-"

"But I want to!" Ash exclaimed quickly, not wanting her to reject his help for the sake of being tough against the cold. It was silent in the cavern, and Ash realized how loud and forcefully he had spoken. However, Misty was totally unaffected by his tone, and continued to gaze at him in wonder.

"…Okay." Misty gradually smiled at him happily. "Thanks!" Ash beamed at her with pleasure, having been able to successfully help her out at least a little bit. When Misty couldn't possibly stand to look him in his russet eyes any more, she looked back down at the vest and carefully slipped her arms through the sleeves. The vest actually did warm her up, as it was still warm from where Ash had been wearing it. The thought of how much Ash actually wore the same vest she was now wearing warmed her up considerably, too. "Thanks, Ash," Misty whispered again.

"I know that it won't help your legs or neck any," Ash apologized, "but-"

"It'll help a lot, Ash," Misty smiled, "so don't worry. As for my legs, well, as long as we keep moving, it's not too cold. And my neck, well, there's nothing much to do for that."

"You know," Ash said slowly, coming up with an idea as he spoke, "if you take your hair down, it might cover your neck and keep it warm." After he finished his suggestion, Ash felt somewhat stupid. Misty never just left her hair down. The only time it was not in that sideways ponytail of hers was when she was about to go to sleep, and only just before. She usually took it down when she was already in her sleeping bag. The last time he had seen her hair down, when she wasn't sleeping, was the day that they had woken up in the Pokémon Center after the bicycle crash. Sitting up, somewhat dazed, with her short hair framing her face, she had looked strikingly elegant.

Ash was just about to reject his own statement, when Misty replied, "That's a good idea, Ash." To Ash's surprise, she began to take her ponytail down. _What is the point of having my kind of hair, no matter how short it is, _Misty thought logically, _if I don't use it when it can serve a purpose?_ Concentrating hard on pulling the hair band out with both hands, so it didn't pull any hair out with it, Misty didn't see Ash's look of anticipation. Suddenly, the band came out, and Misty's short, soft, orange hair cascaded down around her face. Misty shook her head to get the hair settled into its place. She loved the feeling of it when it whooshed down from its ponytail.

'Pretty' was the only thing Ash could think of to describe Misty at the moment. _What a difference a hair band can make. _Ash didn't think Misty was ugly or anything with her hair up, even though he had joked and called her 'scrawny' before; he just thought her hair down made her look even better than normal. Once again, Ash was reminded that she was definitely a girl, no matter how she acted. Misty looked up to see Ash gawking at her with a peculiar look on his face. She felt a bit nervous, not knowing what he was thinking. She hoped it was something good.

"…We should keep going, Ash." Misty said, unsure. Ash snapped out of his stupor. "Standing here isn't going to get us anywhere."

"Yeah," Ash responded quickly. He pulled his gaze away from Misty and stared out at the long passageway ahead, with its snow, huge silver walls, stalactites and stalagmites, and cathedral-arched ceiling high above. "I don't think going on is going to get us much anywhere either, but it's at least something to do."

Misty nodded, slipping her hair band onto her left wrist for safekeeping. There was no point in walking any farther into the second, further-under-the-ground cavern, as they were probably just going farther away from the only exit. However, there was no way to get out the exit, so why sit around and do nothing? It was better to be exploring the strange, almost mythical-like grotto than to stay still and be cold. Though it seemed like they had been doing this forever, they began to shuffle on through the endless snow, side by side, in a comfortable silence.

As the sound of snow crunching under their shoes filled Ash's ears again, he glanced over at Misty once more. Perhaps she felt his gaze on her, because a moment later Misty, hands in the vest's pockets, looked over at Ash. Ash smiled genially at her, and received a happy smile right back. Flushed slightly but still smiling, Misty looked back down at the snow she was walking on and giggled nervously. Ash was bemused, and vaguely wondered why she would giggle when he looked at her, but didn't think too much about that. _Well, I guess I'm doing a better job at being personal and comfortable with her than I did before. Oh, come on, Misty! Open up and tell me what you're so worried about! …Well, you don't look very worried right now, but I know you still are._

Suddenly, there was another sound that filled the cavern besides the crunching of snow. It was a cracking sound. Ash and Misty stopped walking. Ash anxiously shot a look at the cavern tunnel walls. He saw nothing that could make that sound. Misty glanced around at the ceiling and walls, too, until she felt an all-too-familiar sensation under her feet.

"ASH!" Ash whirled around in time to see Misty's horrified face as the snow and ground under her feet began to cave in. His eyes widened.

"MISTY!" He made a grab for her stretched out hand as she began to fall. Ash managed to catch her right hand with his, and was pulled to the snowy ground on his stomach as Misty vanished through the newly created opening. He pulled his head out of the smothering flurries, and looked down into the hole through which his right arm was dangling, from which Misty was dangling. Ash knew he wasn't going to be able to hold on to the ground long, and he wasn't. Gravity pulled on Misty, which pulled on Ash in turn, and finally was able to drag him down the hole until he ceased to be in the second underground cavern. With a cry, Ash and Misty landed a second later, their backs to the ground… in more snow.

As they landed, flurries whooshed out from underneath them and swirled around them like a shaken snow globe. Ash was in shock from the fall, and stared in remorse at the hole above them. _I hate holes,_ Ash thought simply. _If I never see another hole in my life, it'll be too soon._ Ash figured that with Team Rocket around, he would be bound to see more holes with all of the ones that they dug, so he wondered, as the snowflakes settled, if there was a way to block holes from a person's vision. He couldn't think of anything immediately, so he gave up.

He heard Misty exhale sadly beside him. He didn't even bother sitting up from where he had landed in the snow to see Misty laying nearby the way he was. He was about to ask Misty what she thought about holes, then changed his mind. He cast about his brain for another topic.

"Who do you think won?"

"Won what?"

"That Brace Hide-And-Seek game."

"Oh, that." Misty thought for a moment, then replied sardonically, "…I guess us, unless they're still playing. Yeah, you and me must have won, Ash. We hid so well that even WE don't know where we are."

Ash chuckled sadly. "You're right about that." Staring up at the stalactites staring down at him, he began to wonder what Brock, May, Max, and the Pokémon were doing. "I wonder if they're back at camp."

_I wonder if they're back at camp._ It was Brock's self-appointed job to think positively, but this was hard to do. Brock was now worried out of his mind, wondering about the whereabouts of Ash and Misty. He glanced backwards at the group following him, as the leader, as Ash was not present. May looked rather disheveled, trailing her unraveled bandana loosely from her left hand, and lowering her eyelids slowly, then snapping them open quickly. Poochyena had decided to get back into Max's arms of his own choice, and was leaning over Max's left shoulder, drifting off quickly. Pikachu was still carrying Togepi, who was sound asleep, piggyback style. They were all worn out, and for good reason. The sun had completely set, and night had fully come upon them.

The whole group would have been stuck in the complete darkness of the woods all night, had it not been for Max's PokéNav. The little golden-colored device had, of all things, a built-in flashlight, which Brock was using right now to lead the way. Brock glanced back at the map on the glowing screen. Any second, they were about to come upon the campsite, according to the two red dots.

Brock looked up, and as an afterthought, stared back down at the screen. He pushed a button, which Max had indicated when he let Brock borrow the PokéNav, was the clock button. The time flashed up on the screen. 10:30 PM, the screen read, in a digital clock manner. _Ten thirty! No wonder it's totally black and everyone's half asleep! Ten thirty! We should have been in bed about nine thirty, or ten at the most! Good grief! How long have we been out here searching for Ash and Misty? I think we started this game about seven thirty, because it was seven or so at dinner. So… about three hours, then? It seems more like three days, or three weeks, or three years. …This is bad. If they're not back at camp, something's definitely wrong. Misty wouldn't stay away this long on purpose. Even Ash has enough sense to come back after three hours of hiding. Come on, you guys. Please be there!_

He saw the bushes that surrounded the campsite in the flashlight beam. Brock broke into a run, and it took a second for the others to respond to the change of pace. Max and Pikachu rushed on with their sleeping partners. May continued walking slowly. She hadn't even seen the others go past her, as her eyes were completely closed. She looked as if she was sleepwalking, which she might have been.

Brock burst into the campsite. A quick glance around confirmed Brock's worst fear. Their sleeping bags, backpacks, and supper dishes were all there, but there was no Ash and no Misty. Brock groaned and collapsed wearily on a log bench, turning the light from the PokéNav off. The embers from the campfire were still lit enough that it cast a dim glow over everything. Pikachu entered the camp, looking around as he walked. When he saw that his master and his friend were not there, Pikachu's ears drooped and he dejectedly muttered, "Pika…", soft and low, so as not to wake Togepi. Max stumbled into the camp, and immediately sat down on the log beside Brock, cradling a slumbering Poochyena in his arms. He was too tired to even look up, but he knew, from the lack of sound, that Ash and Misty weren't here.

"What'da we do now, Brock?" Max asked tonelessly, stroking Poochyena's fur. "Are we gonna go search some more?"

Brock stared up at the stars shining high above them. The moon was almost full. "… No… we can't search anymore tonight… everyone's too sleepy, and it's too dark. We'd get lost too easy, even with your PokéNav." Brock handed the device back to its owner.

"What about Ash and Misty?"

Brock sighed. He was quiet. Then, "Go on to bed, Max. Don't worry about it. Just get some sleep, okay?" Max didn't argue because Brock's tone was too serious to quarrel with. Instead, he scooped his wolf Pokémon up and carried him over to his sleeping bag.

From out in the forest, there was a thudding sound, followed by a sleepy, "ow!" Shaking his head, Max set his Pokémon down on his bed, then ambled off into the trees from whence they came. Brock watched Pikachu carry a curled up Togepi over to Ash's empty sleeping bag and set him down on the pillow. A moment later, Max reappeared, guiding his tousled sister by one hand, and carrying her bandana in the other. Brock morosely watched him lead May over to her own sleeping bag. He heard Max mutter, "Guess I'm not the only one who runs into trees all the time, huh, May?" She only grunted in answer.

Brock stared up into the night sky again, looking for answers. He just didn't know what to do. He wished that there was someone else in charge right now, someone older, an adult, anyone, just not himself. Brock knew in his heart, though, that no one was coming to help and it was up to himself to decide what to do about the missing trainers. _They're lost or in trouble. Maybe both. Ash and Misty just have to be unable to come back for some reason. …They could be in danger right now._ Brock didn't want to think about the worst things that could happen to them. It was too much to worry about.

"Brock?" came a soft voice. Brock looked up. "Come here a second." It was May. Brock got up from the log and walked over to where May was sitting on top of her sleeping bag. She pointed to her side pouch that was laying next to her. "Someone's been here, Brock. See?" She showed Brock where her two Pokéballs were sitting on the ground a foot away. "I never got out Torchic's and Beautifly's Pokéballs before we left camp. When I came over here, they were sitting right where they are now. My bag was open, too, Brock, and I never leave it open, never."

A stressed Brock didn't know if he could handle something else going wrong. "Is anything missing?" She shook her head. "Good. Okay, then. Um… just… go on and go to bed, then, May. …I'll check the camp to see if anything else has been disturbed. Don't worry about it."

"Who do you think was here, Brock?"

"I don't know. A wild Pokémon? Team Rocket, maybe? I just don't know." For a second, Brock wondered if Ash and Misty had been back at camp, until he realized that they had no reason to disturb May's things.

"Why didn't they take anything, then?"

Brock was at a loss. "I don't know, May."

"What about A-"

"I just don't know!" Brock's voice rose in volume and tension. May looked frightened. He was almost sobbing with the stress he felt he was under. "I just don't know! Don't worry about it! I'll handle it, okay? Just go on to bed! It's late!"

"Brock-"

"Please!" May saw she had pushed too far, and she felt bad about it. The only thing she could do to make up for it was to do as Brock requested: go to bed. She nodded slowly, not looking at him, and gathering her pajamas from her bag, went off somewhere to put them on. Brock walked slowly back to the bench and sat. He wiped away a tear that was threatening to fall. _Keep a hold of yourself, Brock. You scared her, and you don't want to worry about more things than you already are. …Can I handle this myself? …I have to. You're in charge, Brock. You're responsible. …Yeah, I'm sure responsible. Responsible for letting Ash and Misty get lost and our camp to be invaded by someone. Why, why, why, why, why…_

Brock sat there a long time, brooding and worrying, until he heard a noise and sensed someone sit down beside him. Brock looked up, not at the person, but around at the camp. Over at Ash's sleeping bag, Pikachu had tucked Togepi in for the night on the pillow and had curled up himself beside her, pulling the bed's sheet around them. They were fast asleep. Brock knew that Pikachu was as worried about Ash and Misty as he was, but Pikachu had managed to take care of what he was in charge of, Togepi. _If he can do it, why can't I?_ May was just now snuggling into her sleeping bag, her Pokéballs repacked in her pouch. She rolled over to get comfortable, her back now to him, as if truly "turning her back on him". He wondered if she did it on purpose. In Max's sleeping bag, Poochyena was curled up under the blanket, fast asleep. Brock's and Misty's sleeping bags remained empty.

Max finally spoke. "I heard what May told you, and most everything else hasn't been moved. My stuff and Misty's things were okay, but all five of your Pokéballs were dropped outside of your bag." Brock looked at the boy sitting beside him. Max was in his pajamas and held two items in his lap. "Ash's Pokéball belt was laying a bit away from his bag. I found this over near it, too." Max held out one of the items, an empty soup bowl with a spoon sticking out of it. When he saw Brock wasn't going to take it, he set the bowl and spoon on the ground. "Everything else is okay. I looked hard. Nothing's missing either."

"…I thought I told you to go on to bed."

"I put Ash's belt in his bag, and I put your Pokéballs back up."

Brock didn't speak.

"You're welcome." Max evenly stared back at Brock's stare. "You can stop worrying about the camp now. …You'll give yourself a heart attack if you stress yourself too much. That's a proven fact. I read about how stress gives people heart attacks once. Or maybe twice, I don't know. I can't keep up with how much I read things. Anyway, you can only be concerned about Ash and Misty now."

"I think I'm going to have a heart attack right now."

"Please don't. You're in charge of us. You're responsible."

Brock chuckled dryly a bit. "You don't have to remind me so much, you know?"

"What would we ever do without you?"

"…Worry about things yourself?"

Max chuckled himself. "Brock, we're worried about Ash and Misty, too. Just 'cause we've gotta get some sleep doesn't mean we're not. It also doesn't mean that you're the only one that has to figure out what to do. We can make suggestions."

"…Are you psychic?"

"Nope. Did I read your mind?" Brock nodded. Max smiled. "May says I do that sometimes."

"Let me ask you a question, then, if you want to help me figure out what to do. Should we get up and keep searching some more? I just remembered, Ash's Pokéballs are here, so that means that Noctowl is here. We can use him to help us look in the dark. So should we pack the camp and go on?"

"No. We shouldn't. You said yourself we could get lost in the dark, and that everyone's too sleepy to go on. We're the only one's left awake now, anyway." They could hear May breathing softly in slumber. "Besides, what if Ash and Misty come back here in the dark? If we pack up and leave, they'll not be able to find us."

"You're right, Max. You're exactly right. That's what we should do."

"Hey, I'm just retelling you what you told me." Max shrugged. "Brock, don't stress yourself. Yeah, you're kinda in charge of us, 'cause you're the oldest, but it's not like you were with them and something happened to them. They're around here somewhere. They'll turn up. Just get some sleep yourself, 'kay? If they're not here in the morning, we'll keep looking."

"…Are you sure you're not related to a Kadabra?"

Max grinned. "Positive."

_Here was the answer,_ Brock thought, taking a glance at the stars he wished would help him out. _I thought I needed someone older, an adult, to help me, but here I am, being assured of my competence by an eight-year-old._ He looked back down at Max. _And I feel better now, too. I made the right decision._

"You're smart for someone so young."

"I know."

Brock couldn't help a small smile. "That's not exactly what I meant. I mean… you're very wise for someone you're age. A lot more than me. You know how to handle these situations. Yeah, Max, you're very wise."

There was a moment of thoughtful silence before the younger boy replied, in a whisper, "No one's ever told me that before." He looked up at Brock. His glasses glinted in the dim embers of the campfire. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. Are you going to go get some sleep, now? Poochyena's probably waiting for you."

"Are you?"

"In a minute." Max gave him a stern look. "Like you said, Ash and Misty might come back in the night, so I'm just going to stay up a few more minutes to wait and see."

"Well, get to bed soon. Here," Max handed Brock the remaining item he held in his lap. The PokéNav. "Use the clock and don't be awake too long, because if they don't come back, we'll have to be really awake tomorrow to search some more." Brock took the PokéNav and held the object carefully in his hands. Max got up, tiptoed over to another bench, picked up the textbook he had left there, and went to his sleeping bag. "Good night, Brock."

"Good night, Max." Brock watched him get settled before turning on the PokéNav. He touched the clock button. 10:45 PM. _I'll wait until curfew._

Curfew was officially eleven o'clock for the group. Actually, that was the curfew for all Pokémon Centers. If a trainer wanted to sleep in a bed at the Center, and not outside in a sleeping bag, they had to be there by eleven, or they couldn't get in. The Nurse Joys wouldn't let anyone out of the center after eleven, either. Some even barred the doors. Ash, Misty, and Brock had always had their own curfew: always back at camp by eleven, or else. All three had, at sometime, accidentally or purposefully run late, and gotten back to camp at twelve or one or some ungodly hour of the night, so they adopted the Pokémon Center's curfew. May and Max had never even gotten into anything that could make them late, so they didn't even know about the curfew. Brock found it interesting how the three of them, Ash, Misty, and himself, attracted more trouble than the others. He wondered if this magnetism was what was keeping Ash and Misty from returning.

While he waited, Brock slipped on his pajamas and sat down on his sleeping bag. He checked the clock. 10:50 PM. Brock glanced around. The woods were quiet, except for their own night-forest sounds, the whirling wings of Volbeat, the call of a lone HootHoot, the rustling of Ratatta in the trees. An event came to mind, from Brock's memory. Brock held the PokéNav in his left hand lightly as he recalled the first time he had been late for curfew. Way back, towards the beginning of the first journey through their home of Kanto, Ash, Misty, and himself had planned to stay for the night at a Center near a monument called Maiden's Peak. He had been attracted by something at the monument, and had completely forgotten about curfew. Ash and Misty were waiting for him at eleven in the Pokémon Center, but when he never showed up, Ash tried to leave to find him. The Nurse Joy, however, barred the door and refused to allow Ash to leave, even to look for a friend. Curfew was not something to be taken lightly.

Brock remembered Ash and Misty telling him later how worried sick they had been about him. He wondered if they had felt the same way he felt now. Brock also began to wonder, if perhaps, they were prevented like he was by something and lost track of time. _Nah, not like me. With Misty being female, and Ash being who he is, they definitely aren't being delayed by a beautiful girl. Maybe something else, though. _

Thoughts simply kept drifting through Brock's worried mind so much that he didn't realize that he was drifting off. He didn't know that suddenly, he was laying down on his sleeping bag, and that he was fast asleep like everyone else. The PokéNav, still on, slid out of his limp hand. The red-lit time shot through the darkness of the night.

11:01 PM.

This cavern was different from the others.

There was still snow, rising and falling in swells across the ground, filling the bottom of the cavern like water in a bathtub. The walls were still high and jagged, marble-patterned silver and white. The stalactites still dribbled a drop or two of water every now and then, and the stalagmites still pointed themselves sharply out of the snow, as mountains do out of fog. This cavern was different from the two caves above, that Ash and Misty had traveled in, but only because of its size.

This, the third grotto, was huge. It was perhaps not as high to the ceiling as in the other caverns, but it was wide, very wide. When Ash and Misty stood up, they found that they had landed on a thirteen-foot wide cliff that rimmed part of the outside wall of the almost-circular cavern and overlooked most of it. At the precipice of the cliff, there was a sharp, steep drop to the main floor. It was magnificent to study. They were speechless in awe.

"…Wow." Ash was finally able to speak. He glanced over at Misty. Their wide eyes connected, then gazed back out at the breathtaking scene.

"I… I've never seen anything like it… never!" Misty stammered, crossing her arms.

"Me neither." They both paused. "…Do you think there's a way down there?"

Misty eyed the cliff edge warily. "You could jump," she joked sarcastically.

Ash grinned. "Okay!" He actually had no intentions of doing such a thing, but it was fun to tease Misty. He was a bit surprised that Misty gave him a shocked and worried look. He thought she would know he was joking.

"Oh no you don't, Ash Ketchum!" she sputtered, her voice very anxious. "Don't you even think about it!"

Ash laughed at her appalled face. "I was just kidding, Mist!"

Misty shot a stern look at him. "It's not funny. You could get killed if you did that." Ash stopped laughing when he saw how serious she was. He saw her aquatic eyes glisten fearfully, full of concern, full of concern for himself.

"I'm sorry," Ash apologized, and he meant it. _Don't know why she'd be worried about me, though._ Misty sighed and shook her head, causing her hair to whisk back and forth gently. "Really, do you think there's a way down there?"

"Maybe." Misty looked up. "Hey, Ash, what's that behind you? Over there." She pointed and Ash turned around. Was that the edge of the cliff, or something else? Ash walked cautiously over to investigate. Carefully, and oh so slowly, Ash peeked over the "edge" and saw that it was not a precipice, but a slope. Like a slide, it was thin, steep, and perfectly smooth. It ran around the rim of the cavern a little ways before touching down on the ground. It was snow-covered, but it was still the perfect, if not only, way to get down, besides jumping to your doom.

"How cool is that!" Ash exclaimed. "Look, Misty! It's a slide!" Misty carefully crept over behind Ash and peeked over his shoulder.

"That's a long way down, Ash."

"Yeah, but doesn't it look fun?"

"…I don't know if I'd exactly say 'fun', but-"

"Come on, Mist! Where's your sense of adventure?"

"I left it back in that last cavern," she replied dolefully.

"It's a whole lot better than jumping, don't 'ya think? Come on, I want to see what's down there!"

"…Oh, fine then," Misty muttered, but she was still anxious.

Ash immediately sat down on the top of the slope, feet out in front, ready to slide. He patted the snow behind him. "Come here, Mist. Sit down so we can slide down to the ground!" Misty looked chary. Ash patted the ground a few more times impatiently. "Come on, or I'll leave without you!"

"You'll do no such thing," Misty chided quietly. Carefully she lowered herself into the snow behind Ash, her legs crossed. Ash snorted and beat the snow beside his legs with his hands, exactly like a child on a playground who wants their best friend to slide with them. Misty slowly stretched her legs out, one on each side of Ash. She was blushing redder than she had in quite awhile, but Ash didn't see, and if he had, he wouldn't have known what to think anyway. Ash scooted off the edge and he slowly began to slip down the slope, spraying snow off the edge of the slide as he went. Misty quickly grabbed him around the waist, much to her own embarrassment, before Ash could slide too far. She slid off the edge behind him, and suddenly, they were sliding.

The ride down the slope was actually a lot quicker than Misty had thought it would be. It was a lot shorter compared to the time that it had taken Ash to convince Misty to go on the slide in the first place. They began to go faster as their momentum grew and the wind they created blew Misty's let-down hair back behind her. Ash gave a great whoop of excitement as they drew closer to the ground. Misty had just begun to enjoy the ride when, suddenly, they slid to a stop.

Misty quickly scooted away from Ash as soon as she could, trying to get her blushing face under control, but Ash sat where he had stopped and looked up at the cliff they had come from. It didn't look as high from down there as it had up there. Misty sat blinking her eyes, thinking that the breeze coming down had made them weary, until she realized how tired she really was. "Ash, I-" Ash looked around in time to see Misty covering her yawning mouth. Suddenly, a yawn sparked from Ash's mouth, too. He tried to repress it, but it didn't work. Misty finished her sentence. "I'm really sleepy, Ash. Aren't you?"

A yawn threatened to keep Ash from replying. "Yeah, me too. What time do you think it is?"

"Well, how long do you think we've been in here?"

"Maybe five hours, or six."

"Kinda feels like two or three to me."

Ash shrugged. "Then it could be anywhere from about… nine o'clock to two in the morning."

Misty's eyes grew wide. "Ash…" Ash looked up. "…Curfew…"

"Shoot… you know, Mist, it kinda feels like eleven right now."

"How can it FEEL like eleven, if you don't have a watch and you can't see outside?"

"Because this is usually how sleepy I feel if I'm still up at eleven. …We're not getting out of here tonight, are we?"

"Doesn't look like it, no. Do you think Brock and May and Max are worried about us?"

"Yeah. Especially Brock. Poor Brock. He's probably all upset, especially if it's after curfew already."

"Ash, do you… do you think they'll find us down here? I mean, the hole we fell through was in the middle of the meadow, and that's not usually a place where you look for missing people." Ash shrugged. "So what are we going to do now?"

"Sleep. We have to get some rest."

"In the middle of the snow?"

"Nah," Ash looked around, "Up next to the cliff. Hey, look there. What's that?" He pointed to what appeared to be a slight indention in the wall under the cliff. Ash struggled up out of the snow, a challenge for someone getting sleepier by the minute. He trudged off towards it, Misty scrambling to follow, pulling Ash's vest tighter to her body. When they neared it, Ash and Misty saw that it was, in fact, a slight crater in the wall. To his delight, Ash saw that the ground was slightly higher here, and the snow would be easy to scrape away. Ash did just that. "Look, Misty. Rock." Ash had found, not the ground, but a large, smooth rock that was right against the wall, inside the crater. It was perfect for resting on, at least, the best to be found in a wild cavern. "Here," Ash proclaimed, "Here is where we shall rest." He climbed onto it, and turned back to Misty. "Are you coming?" He scooted back against the wall, where it felt very secure, and patted the rock to his right.

Misty didn't know what to do. She was still getting over her embarrassment from sliding down the slope behind him. Now he was asking her to sit right next to him. _Come on, Misty girl, you can do it. You know you want to, anyway. He's asking you to sit that close to him, and you're unsure? What's gotten into you? …I don't know. He's been acting so nice to me, almost too nice, yet it's so sincere. …Oh, come off it, Misty, didn't you say you weren't going to hide yourself from him any longer? Didn't you pledge you were going to fight May for his love? Now's the time to start. He WANTS you to sit next to him. He ASKED you! Do it. You want to so bad anyway._ Misty had only allowed herself a few moments in the past to get this close to him, and now, taking a big chance as she saw it, she allowed herself one more.

Ash was glad when Misty began to crawl up onto the rock. He was trying his hardest to get her more comfortable around himself, as he had pledged. _Misty, I'm doing the best I can to be personal with you, and close to you, so you will tell me what's wrong, but you're so unsure. Why? It's almost like you're scared of me._ Misty finally got up onto the rock, but then she wasn't sure what to do once more. Ash patted the rock to his right again and smiled. Misty smiled back, as best as she could manage without blushing, and crawled over to where Ash had indicated. She sat down and scooted up against the cliff, copying Ash by bringing her knees up to her chest.

Misty glanced over at Ash. He was smiling at her. Suddenly, she realized that she was looking him right in the eyes, something she hadn't done very often until this day. _So… so very beautiful… I never saw… I never knew… how beautiful his eyes are._ Misty felt mesmerized by Ash's bright gleaming russet eyes gazing right back at her. She could have melted, right then and there, sitting beside him so close that if they moved even a centimeter, their legs would brush.

If Ash had thought that Misty's hair was pretty, it was nothing compared to what he now thought of her own eyes. _I know that I've looked her in her eyes before, so I could know what she was really feeling, but I don't think I ever really noticed how… p-pretty they are. _Ash felt her eyes suited her absolutely perfect. Blue and green merged as one, they reminded Ash strongly of the ocean Misty loved and felt at home in. Ash felt a strange jolt in his stomach, something almost foreign, yet so familiarly unnamable that Ash was frightened.

Misty simply could not stand it. She had to look away, or she knew her lips would begin to spill forth secrets that she had forbidden herself to say aloud… yet. She gazed out at the snowy depths of the cavern, and found that she was no longer satisfied seeing the whiteness of it. The silvery beauty was lost in comparison with Ash. She closed her eyes, so she wouldn't be able to see either the boy or the landscape. This was a mistake. The time was so late, though the cavern seemed to be in a time dimension of its own, and Misty was so sleepy, that as soon as her eyelids shut, she was unable to open them again.

Ash, who had been gazing out at the grotto, glanced at Misty and saw that she was fast asleep, leaning up against the wall. Her head was slumped onto her chest, and she looked like she was about to fall forward if Ash didn't do something to help her. He quickly put his right arm around her shoulder and jerked her back to the wall. Instead of leaning her head against the wall, however, a sleeping Misty leaned over onto Ash and, in her sleep, snuggled her face into his neck. Ash's face grew red, but he didn't want to disturb her, as she looked rather peaceful. He tried to pull his arm out from around her shoulders, but it was impossible. He gave up and resigned himself to sleep the way they were sitting. Carefully, Ash leaned his head onto the top of hers as a pillow. Ash found, to his surprise, that he couldn't truthfully say that this arrangement wasn't comfortable.

Within a minute, both Ash and Misty were only awake in their dreams.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

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I hope you enjoyed this novel so far and please review! Also, if you have any questions that you would really like for me to answer about anything, then e-mail me. I enjoy answering questions so feel free to ask anything. Also, if you like Misty a lot, I encourage you to read my story called Misty's Schedule. It was my first fanfic, but it's pretty cute. Review and thanks for reading so far!

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 4's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter.


	5. It's Everything I've Dreamed About

I bet you're all anxious to find out what happens now, huh? Well, good, because now you get to find out! On Chapter Four's title, the line "…the days and nights are nice and icy clear…" is from _Winter Is The Coolest Time Of Year_, from the Pokémon Christmas Bash CD. This is about the best Pokémon CD of them all, because the characters sing all of the songs, and that is one of my favorite songs. Good job to Halfling Rouge and The girl who flamed, who both got the title right. I'd like to give special congratulations to Sparklewolf, who has gotten it right every single time so far! (I hope you get it this time too, and I don't "Jynx" you! ) Also, I forgot to mention last time, but in Chapter Four, I had a reference to "The Ghost Of Maiden's Peak", an episode from Season One. I'm going to make a reference to other episodes in the future, just so you know. Read and review! 

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**CHAPTER 5: …It's Everything I've Dreamed About…**

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Brock never realized that he had fallen asleep. For him, one second, it was dark, the next, it was light. When he finally recognized that he hadn't been awake the whole time, waiting for the possible return of his friends, he sat bolt upright on his sleeping bag. His hand brushed the side of the still-on PokéNav, and he glanced down at it. The clock read 7:24 AM. Quickly, Brock looked around. Everyone else was still asleep, but Ash's and Misty's sleeping bags were empty, save for their Pokémon. He was disappointed, but deep inside, he had known that Ash and Misty weren't going to be there anyway. It would have been too good to be true.

With a sigh, Brock shut the PokéNav off, so as to not run the batteries down any more than he had already accidentally had. Brock didn't bother to wake up comfortably slow, but let his mind immediately begin to organize and plan. _All right. I wasn't able to do anything last night, but now I can._ Now that Brock was able to do something, he didn't feel so stressed._ We can form search parties. That'll be the best thing to do. I'm guessing they're probably outside the area we were supposed to stay in, because May and I probably covered most of it before we found the others, and all of us probably covered the rest before we got back to camp. All right,_ he glanced around at everyone who was sleeping, _a quick breakfast, pack up, and we go._

He figured his best bet on who to wake up first would be Max. Brock tiptoed over to Max's sleeping bag, where Max was hugging Poochyena to him in his sleep. It reminded Brock exactly of the way Ash and Pikachu, and Misty and Togepi, always slept. He wondered if the two had missed their Pokémon companions in the night, and hadn't had anyone to sleep cuddled up with. Brock shook Max's shoulder gently and whispered, "Hey. Max. Wake up."

Max twitched, opened his eyes, and then sat up quickly. He reached blindly out to beside his sleeping bag, grabbed his glasses, and put them on. "Are they here?" he asked quickly, glancing around frantically for Ash and Misty. Poochyena very drowsily crawled out of the sleeping bag and sluggishly began to scratch an ear with a back paw.

Brock shook his head. "Nope."

"Search parties, then?"

"Yes, oh Great Max, the Psychic Mindreader." Max grinned a bit. "Wake everyone else up. I want to have a group discussion on what we should do, because we need to eat and pack quickly to start searching as soon as possible."

"Okay." Max clamored out of his bed and went over to wake his sister and the other Pokémon up. When Max had his back turned, Poochyena laid down on the ground and tried to go back to sleep. Max quickly got the pup up on his paws again. Brock grabbed his clothes from his bag and went out of the bushes surrounding the camp to change. Slipping his clothes on, Brock began to make a list in his mind of what possibly could have happened to his friends. The list was actually pretty long. As he pulled on his shoes, Brock remembered how rude he had been to May the night before when he was overstressed over Ash and Misty. _I need to apologize. I bet I sounded awful mad when I wasn't._ He walked back into camp. Max and May were gone, off putting on their own clothes.

Brock sat down on a log by the burnt out campfire and stared at the empty pot on it, imagining the pot beginning to fix food by itself. Across from him, also staring at the empty pot, were Pikachu, Togepi, and Poochyena, all in a row, with the exact same forlorn look on each of their faces. They all looked up at Brock, hungry and expectant. He shrugged. "We'll have to see what May and Max think we should do before I get a breakfast going, if that's what we're gonna do."

Pikachu and Poochyena sighed. Togepi chirped, and looked around for her mother. Pikachu looked around pointlessly for Ash. "Pika Pi chu Pikachupi pika pikachu?" he asked Brock, wanting to know if they were going to go looking for the missing two. Brock nodded. Pikachu nodded, but his ears drooped. Togepi trilled.

May and Max walked into camp, fully dressed. May yawned and stretched, then sat down beside Max, who had sat down on the log across from Brock, behind the Pokémon. "Good morning, everyone. Now right to business. All right, we have two things to decide. Should I fix breakfast?" Brock asked, "Or should we just have some leftover rice balls from lunch yesterday?"

"The rice balls," Max nodded, "We need to get started looking, and we can eat them as we walk." Brock nodded in agreement. May was staring into space rather dreamily. Pikachu gagged slightly. Even though Brock made delicious rice balls, Pikachu had grown sick of eating them as leftovers during the journeys through Kanto and Johto. Ash, Misty, and Brock would sometimes have to eat them for a week at a time until they found a grocery store or PokéMart to get supplies at. May and Max hadn't grown sick of repetitiveness yet.

"Also, should we split up, or go as one search party? Two could cover more ground."

"I think maybe one," Max reasoned, "because we don't have two maps, only one PokéNav, so we could get lost ourselves, like Ash and Misty probably are. What do you think, May?" She simply kept staring at nothing. "May?" She was obviously lost in a daydream, and a good one from the look on her face. "MAY! WAKE UP!" She jumped, startled, and looked at her raging younger brother. "THIS IS NO TIME TO BE DREAMING, MAY! THIS IS SERIOUS BUSINESS!"

May blinked, and looked at Brock. "Did Ash and Misty come back last night?" With a groan, Max fell down in incredulity. Pikachu wailed sadly. May blinked again.

"No. We're going to go search for them now." Brock explained patiently. "We need to go pack our stuff up now, right Max?" Max stood up and nodded, but glared at his sister irritably. May was slightly bemused.

Everyone split up to pack his or her belongings. After Brock had everything of his own set, he glanced over and saw Pikachu trying to roll Ash's sleeping bag up all by himself, which wasn't going too well. It kept unrolling back on top of him, and crushing him to the ground. Brock walked over quickly and helped Pikachu secure it in a bundle, then slip it into Ash's backpack. Pikachu zipped the bag shut, then went over to Misty's to do the same. When he saw he couldn't roll that sleeping bag up either, Pikachu called Brock back to help. Together, they got the missing two's things together.

All supplies were packed, all five bags were in a pile, and the campfire was completely extinguished, when Brock checked the PokéNav clock. 7:54 AM. May and Max were patiently awaiting command from the eldest trainer. The three Pokémon were restless. "Okay, everyone," Brock began, making up his instructions as he went, "Go ahead and get your own things first, and we'll see what's left." Brock heaved his backpack onto his back. Max put his own backpack on, and patted the side of his leg in a signal for Poochyena to sit next to him, which the wolf Pokémon happily did. May snapped her side pouch on and crossed her arms, waiting.

Brock stared back down at the two remaining bags. "Now who is going to carry these?" he mused.

"I'll carry Misty's," May spoke up quickly. Brock nodded, and May grabbed the red satchel and swung it on her back. _I know that saying,' to have a friend, you have to be a friend', is true. So Misty, wherever you are out there, I'm trying to be your friend by helping you. I just want you to be my friend, because having to walk every day and camp every night with an enemy is no fun. _

"I'll carry Ash's pack, Brock," Max said, as Brock had leaned down to get the bag himself. "You carry too much already." Brock gave the green pack to Max.

"Take his Pokéball belt out, Max," Brock instructed, "before you put the bag on. You never know when we might need Ash's Pokémon, and need them ready, fast." Max got the belt out, and held it, unsure of what to do. "Well, put it on!"

Max's caramel eyes grew wide. "What?"

Brock grinned. "You have to wear it. You're in charge of his bag, so you're in charge of his Pokémon."

Max gasped happily. "REALLY?" Brock nodded. Max slowly and reverently snapped the belt around his waist. May was watching her brother contentedly. Max closed his eyes, and let his hand feel the Pokéballs secured loyally to his side. This was like a dream Max had had before. Embarrassed slightly at his actions, Max quickly picked Ash's bag up, and fastened the pack straps around his shoulders, so the pack hung down on top of his own.

Pikachu leaped up onto Max's left shoulder. "Pika!" Pikachu patted Max gently on the face.

"Are you gonna ride on my shoulder, Pikachu?" Max asked excitedly, his voice squeaky. Pikachu nodded. Max smiled, his eyes flashing behind his black-rimmed glasses. _Oh, boy! Now I feel like a real Pokémon trainer! Oh, I can't wait until I get my own trainers license, and I can use Poochyena in battle instead of just having him as a pet! Oh, Ash, and Misty, and Brock, and May are SO lucky! This feels awesome!_

"Brrii?" Togepi stood by herself in the middle of the circle, looking up at the three people. Now that Pikachu had left her alone, and she didn't see her mother, Togepi began to get upset. She frowned, and tears began to form in her little black eyes.

"Aw, Togepi," May squatted down beside the confused egg Pokémon, "You want me to carry you?"

"Togi?" Togepi wasn't sure. She backed up a few paces from May's outstretched hand. She didn't know May too well, and knew that her mother wasn't too fond of this girl. Togepi looked up at Pikachu on Max's shoulder for help. Pikachu nodded approvingly towards May. Pikachu's word was good enough for the little one who didn't do much thinking, so she slowly walked towards May and held her paws up. May carefully scooped Togepi into her arms, afraid of holding her too tight or too loose. May remembered how Misty held her little baby to her chest, and tried to do the same. Togepi didn't find May's hold as comfortable as her mother's, but it would have to do for now. She trilled, and May smiled, relaxing.

Brock smiled. Misty would have been pleased to see how vigilantly May took care of her baby Pokémon. He hoped Misty would learn to be May's friend, because he could see that May wanted to at least get along.

"All right, we're ready now," Brock announced, taking one last quick look around the campsite. Brock took the PokéNav out of his pocket. 8:00 AM. Brock turned the map on. There was one red dot, them, right in the middle of a sprawling forest that went off all four edges of the screen. The dot was rather small. Brock knew that Ash and Misty were an invisible dot somewhere on that map, or maybe even a dot off the perimeter of the map. _Just a Weedle in a haystack. Ash, Misty, don't be too hard to find… please._ "Let's be off then." May and Max nodded. Pikachu sighed and nodded. Brock turned resolutely to the forest, borrowed PokéNav in hand, and led the way, Max in the middle with Pikachu and Poochyena, and May in the back with Togepi.

The seconds ticked by. The minutes ticked by. The giant forest enclosed the search party. After a few minutes, Brock passed some leftover rice balls out and everyone ate them quietly. Pikachu could only eat half of his before getting sick to his stomach, and gave the rest to Poochyena. Pikachu spotted some clusters of heart-shaped, apricot-colored Pecha berries in a tree a few minutes later and quickly climbed the tree to pick them. After eating a few of the small, sweet berries, Pikachu brought them down to the group, who ate the tender berries and thanked Pikachu heartily. Pikachu returned to sit on Max, who was silently pretending, in his mind, to be a certain Orange League Champion, ready to take on Team Rocket, Team Magma, and Team Aqua all at one time with his electric sidekick. They walked on quietly, only making a noise when shouting Ash's and Misty's names, calling them, hoping they would answer. They didn't.

Awhile later, Brock glanced up from the map and, turning his head, saw May staring into space again, clutching a yawning Togepi absentmindedly to her chest. She had a vague, dreamy grin on her face. Brock wondered what she was thinking about, but he thought he knew, perhaps. He called into the trees to Ash and Misty again, and there was no answer. Brock slowed his pace a bit, and let Max, who was looking for the friends, and at the same time, checking their surroundings for imaginary Magma spies to punish, take the lead. Brock, slipping the PokéNav in his pocket, fell into step beside a May that was unaware of anything but her daydream, as she had been earlier that morning and the night before at dinner.

"Pssst!" Brock whispered, "May!" She didn't respond. Togepi looked up at Brock and trilled, waving her arms. Brock kept looking around and searching as he poked May in the arm gently. May jumped and looked at him, wide-eyed. Brock grinned. "What are you thinking about that makes you so happy?" Brock whispered slyly.

May immediately blushed. She looked away from Brock, into the trees. "ASH! MISTY!" May shouted. All was quiet, except for the occasional Pidgey call. Max and Pikachu took over the yelling. Poochyena howled. Brock raised an eyebrow critically. May's blush intensified a little. "Oh… nothing much…"

"Maybe…" Brock began slowly, "you were thinking about that guy you love, that you told me about a week or two ago? What was his name again? Br-… Ba-…"

"Brendan Birch!" May quickly retorted in a quiet hiss. She blushed again, seeing that Brock had caught her in a somewhat romantic daydream, and knew that he had. She looked away. "Yeah, I… I… was thinking about him again."

"Interesting." Brock grinned. This kind of 'relationship issue' had always fascinated Brock, of course, as he had an 'issue' himself with all of the Nurse Joys and Officer Jennys and any pretty girls they met (that was older than himself). "Yes, it's hard not to think about the people that we love. We worry about them, wonder about them, think they look beautiful, and always try to know what they are thinking or what is worrying them."

"Yeah…" May muttered, starting to drift off into a dream again, "How do you know so much about what it is like to love someone, Brock?"

Brock snorted. "Who do you think you're talking to, huh?" _A womanizer, _May thought casually. "I am Brock: Matchmaker Extraordinaire!"

"…Except for yourself," May added. Brock abruptly became downcast. His shoulders slumped. May felt a bit sorry for mentioning Brock's lack of finding his 'other half'. She tried to cheer him up. "Oh, but don't worry, Brock, I'm sure some day some Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny will love you back!" May giggled nervously. Togepi looked up at Brock, who seemed to have recovered a bit. She glanced back down at the hands that were holding her, and wondered vaguely in her little mind why May had crossed two of her gloved fingers. Brock didn't notice.

"I hope so," Brock muttered, and sighed. "So you really love this Brendan a lot, huh?" May blushed and nodded. "Why didn't you tell him before he moved to, where was it, Mossdeep City?"

May nodded, but looked shocked. "Well, I couldn't tell him, Brock! How could I? What if he didn't love me back? That'd be the end of everything, wouldn't it? You know, I'd much rather have him for a friend than to not have him at all! Good grief, Brock! Don't be so silly!" She mumbled mockingly under her breath, "Why didn't you tell him, May? Oh, because it's friendship suicide!"

"So you keep your feelings for him bottled up?"

May blinked. "Well… yeah."

"How will he ever be able to love you back if he doesn't know you love him in the first place?"

May thought for a moment, then shrugged. "That's my problem, see? I keep thinking about him lately because I'm wondering what to do about it. If I find him again and tell him, he might love me back, but he could also say no. It's such a risk!"

"Well, that's a risk you'll have to take if you ever want him to love you."

May nodded. "…I know. I just… that kind of a risk is so very… risky!"

Brock couldn't help grinning. "That's why it's called a 'risk'." Brock thought for a moment about the whole conversation he and May had just had. Then he realized something. _Oh my gosh! …That's Misty's problem. I've known forever that she loves Ash, but I've always kind of wondered why she'd never tell him. That's it then. She'd rather just be the friend that Ash thinks she is than lose him all together! She's almost stuck between what to do, because if she thinks that May loves Ash, too, then she could lose Ash by both telling him and keeping quiet, which are her only choices. Man, Misty, I wish I could tell you about May and Brendan, but then I'd have to say something about you and Ash, and you wouldn't like me to assume, even though I'm right. In fact, I need to tell you anyway, so you can get this stuff with Ash resolved and everyone can be happy. Well, I can't tell you now because you're not here …It's so strange how May loving Brendan is almost exactly like Misty loving Ash… they're too afraid to say so in case the boys don't love them back. How very strange._

"You know…" May mumbled indecisively, half to herself and half to Brock, "I… I'm going to do it. Next… next time I see Brendan… I'll… I'll tell him… how I feel… about him. I… I'll do that. Maybe… I'll find his phone number… in Mossdeep… and I'll call him. Yes. I'm… I'm going to tell him that I love him, Brock. I'm going to do that."

Brock only heard about the last half of May's subtle rant, as he was still thinking, but he tried to respond. "Good. That's what you need to do. No communication, that's everyone's problem these days." Brock thought he was only thinking his next words, but May heard him quietly say aloud, " 'Need to have a talk with Misty, now. 'Tell her she's not the only one. Other people have her exact same problem, too. Love issues." Brock shook his head in disdain a little bit. When she heard her mother's name, Togepi chirped in May's arms.

May had been watching her younger brother and his Pokémon charges calling for the two missing people from the group, when she suddenly realized what Brock had just muttered. She turned to him quickly and exclaimed in a fast whisper, "You mean that Misty is in love with someone, too, like me, and won't tell him!?" Brock jumped when he heard what May had said, but she went on before he could stop her. "Misty's afraid to tell him, too, because she thinks he doesn't love her back!? Oh, Brock, who is it!? Tell me, please! I wanna know! Who does she love, Brock!? Tell me! I won't tell anyone!"

"I… uh…" _Oh great, now what should I do? How could I have let this slip out of my mouth!? Should I tell her what I think about Ash and Misty?_

"Oh, come on, Brock, I won't tell anyone!"

"Uh… well…" _May, you don't exactly have the best track record on keeping secrets. Everyone knows that, even Misty, who hasn't known you so long._

"Please tell me who she's in love with, Brock! Please! I totally, totally, forever promise not to tell! I mean, who am I going to tell anyway? Max?" She snorted in derision. "Come on, I told you MY deepest, darkest secret, so you can at least tell me Misty's!"

"Well…" _See, May? You can't even keep your own secrets, but you do have a point. …I suppose I could tell you, because you'll probably figure it out anyway, now._

"How about I guess, then? Is it someone I know?" Brock nodded. Suddenly, May remembered something she had thought about the night before. "_That Misty's sure been hanging around Ash an awful lot. Ash has been hanging around her a lot, too. Gosh, they must have been really close when it was just them and Brock traveling together, even though they do seem to fight a lot." …I bet… I bet it's ASH that Misty loves! Ooo, that makes perfect sense, too, from the way they act and everything! Oh my gosh, how awesome is that?_ "It's Ash, isn't it Brock? Misty is in love with Ash!"

_How could she guess on the first guess? _"Well, yes, as far as I know. Unlike you, she hasn't told me, but with all of the things I've seen and been through with those two, I am about one hundred percent certain." Brock was curious as to how May was going to take this information. She reacted in the best way Brock could hope, for Misty's sake.

May was exuberant. "Oh, that is so sweet! I like that! Ash and Misty… their names sound perfect together! That's so great, but kind of strange because of the way they argue, but you know," May smiled, "Brendan and I used to argue a bunch, too!" Brock smiled back, but May suddenly looked troubled. "I just…"

"What's wrong?"

"…Why… why does Misty not like me so much? From the way you said it, me and her seem to have a lot in common. I mean, we're both the only girls in the group, and we both are in love with someone, so why do you think we can't seem to get along? Why do you think she doesn't like me?"

Brock was hesitant to explain the rest of his knowledge on the whole 'love' situation that was happening in the traveling group. He finally decided that it would be best to tell her. "Well, you see, May, I think that… I think that Misty KNOWS you're in love with someone, just… I think that she thinks that… you're both in love with… uh, with the same person."

May blinked. Then she laughed. "…Who? …Ash?" May began to get tickled. She stopped walking and doubled over in laughter. Max stopped and turned around in irritation at being interrupted in looking for the lost two, whom he didn't know were being talked about. Brock stood there beside May with an uncertain look on his face.

"What's your problem?" Max sneered at his sister. Pikachu cocked his head. May, still giggling, waved him away with a free hand, and Max resumed his walking. Brock and May followed him, and Togepi gripped onto May's arm tightly, as she used her free hand to cover her laughing mouth. Her sapphire eyes flashed in amusement.

"You mean, Brock," May managed to gasp out in a whisper, for Max was now trying to hear what they were saying, "that Misty thinks I love Ash?" Brock nodded slowly. May dissolved into another fit of giggles. "That is so silly! Good grief! Ash is nice and all, but… me and him? How dumb is that!? Geesh, I already have, well, kinda have, Brendan. What do I need Ash for? He's my friend and all, but not like that! I've been kinda irritated lately because Ash always talks to her first thing, but now I see why, so I don't mind. …You know, Brendan's my age. I don't really like older guys that way." May grinned. "I like the younger kind."

"Like Misty?"

May chuckled. "Yep! So that's why she doesn't like me?" Brock shrugged in an affirmative sort of way. "Well, I'll just have to do something about that, huh?" May glanced down at Togepi, who was looking up at her, and whispered in a babyish voice, "I gotta tell your Momma that I don't like your Daddy that way, huh?" Togepi trilled. Brock fought a smile off of his face, to keep Max from getting more inquisitive than he already was.

"Hey, May," Brock muttered, remembering something he had decided to do, "I forgot to tell you that I was sorry that I was so mean to you last night. I was way too overstressed over worrying about Ash and Misty, but that was still no reason to be… snippy with you. Will you forgive me?"

"Oh, of course, Brock!" May shrugged the apology away nonchalantly, "I'd be irritable too, if I felt pressured like that. Don't worry about it."

"You guys," Max called to them, "Quit talking about whatever you're talking about and start looking for Ash and Misty. Geesh, what could be more important right now?" Brock realized he was right. He took the PokéNav out of his pocket and turned it on, bringing up the map. Brock wandered toward the front of the line to take the lead again.

"We were talking," May shot back, with a joking edge to her voice, "about your birthday present, Max!"

Max didn't buy the silly excuse for half a second. He snorted. "Yeah, right! My birthday's not, for like, a million months, May, you know that!"

"Well, then," she slyly replied, "it's gotta be a good birthday present if we're planning it this far in advance!" Brock began shouting for Ash and Misty again. Max rolled his eyes.

"Well, go advance some other time," he muttered illogically.

"What, you don't wanna advance? You have to! Be prepared! ARE YOU READY TO ADVANCE?!" May cried out, as if her phrase was from a television commercial.

"May, this is serious. We gotta find Ash and Misty! They've been gone too long. We gotta find 'em." May wiped the smirk off of her face and nodded gravely. _We gotta find Ash and Misty so I can tell Misty how I DON'T feel about Ash. Then, we can finally be friends! _

Brock led them onwards through the skinny trees. A Pidgey called overhead. Pikachu called out to his master and friend into the foliage. Max patted Pikachu on the head in reassurance. Togepi trilled. Poochyena howled.

May yelled out, "Where are you two? ASH! MISTY!"

"Where are those twerps again, James?"

James adjusted one of the straps on the backpack he was wearing. The pack was stuffed and heavy, as it held all of their supplies. Jesse had made him carry everything, but what was new there? "Meowth and I saw that they're way back that way," James pointed south, which was to their left, "and coming straight for us." James and Meowth were still catching their breath from running to see where the twerps were, then running back to report to Jesse.

"Good," Jesse said, crossing her arms and surveying the forest around them. "We need to set our trap up and be hidden way before they get here."

"Hey, Jimmy, tell her what's we didn't find!" Meowth piped up. He sat down and leaned against a tree trunk, fanning himself with a paw.

"Oh, yeah," James remembered, "Jesse, Pikachu was with them and everything, but guess who wasn't there?"

"The Main Twerp?" Jesse replied nonchalantly, leaning against a tree and flipping a strand of red hair out of her face.

James' eyes grew wide. "How did you know?"

Jesse stood straight up again and looked at him in surprise. "Really? The Twerp's not with them? I was only joking."

He shook his head. "The Main Twerp's not there, and neither is the Main Female Twerp." James emphasized his last three words and raised his eyebrows, as if to say something to Jesse without speaking. Meowth didn't notice; he was too busy still recovering from the running. Jesse thought for a moment. _Oh, yeah. The bet. This is good then, if it's those two gone. I wonder if they're together somewhere._

Jesse smiled, and James knew he had gotten through to her. He always did. "Well, as long as Pikachu's headed this way, who cares how many Twerps are coming with him?"

"They're looking for them, though," James muttered, recalling the shouting that had led him and Meowth to find the group so quickly, "so those two twerps must be lost or missing or something. They're calling for them."

Jesse had a quizzical look on her face. "I wonder where they are then, or how they got lost." She got rid of her thoughtfulness and shrugged. "Oh, well, then."

"You'll be saying 'oh, well' when's we find outs that the Main Twerp was just telling the Main Female Twerp that's he hates her and loveses the Second Female Twerp insteads, then she rans off," Meowth suggested with a laugh.

Jesse aimed a kick at the chuckling feline, but Meowth leapt out of the way just in time. "Shut up, Meowth, and get serious! Pikachu's coming right towards us and we're going to catch him once and for all, TODAY!" She kicked out at him again, which caught him off guard and bowled Meowth over.

"HEY!" Meowth jumped up quickly and extended his claws.

James quickly stepped between. "Now's not the time for that!" He sputtered quickly. "We have to set our trap up!"

Jesse glared at Meowth for threatening her, then turned away and began walking north, away from the target group so she could find a place for their trap and still find time to set it up. James and Meowth hurried to catch up with her. "What plan are we going with, Jesse?" James asked.

"Plan H."

Meowth sighed irritably. "You mean, 'H' as in 'hole'?"

"Exactly."

"Oh, please, that's boring! We always dig a stupid hole! It never works!" Meowth complained.

"You mean WE," James gestured to himself and Jesse, as the three ran along, "dig the hole. It'll work this time, Meowth. It's a classic!"

"More like a rerun," muttered Meowth.

Jesse rolled her eyes at their mention of a television show. Somehow, Team Rocket always found a way to incorporate show business into their conversations, for the whole group was prone to love performing and applause. "It can't be a rerun, Meowth. Who'd ever make a television show, or a movie, or a book about holes?"

Meowth shrugged. "Well, the author of this book is." Jesse and James stopped.

"What are you talking about?" Jesse asked impatiently. James looked around, as if expecting to see a book or an author somewhere, just sitting out there in the woods around them.

Meowth sighed. "Never minds. Don't you all worry your puny brains about it." Jesse and James looked at each and shrugged.

The three continued on when suddenly, Jesse muttered, "Here's a good place for a hole." They were at the edge of a clearing in the middle of the woods. They slowed their pace as they walked out towards the middle of the meadow. "There's no tree roots out here to tangle up a hole we could dig."

"That sounds pretty good," Meowth added. "So where's we going to dig it?" The group of three stopped and looked around. James looked at the ground right in front of him and jumped.

"Jess, I don't think we need to dig a hole," James supposed.

Jesse turned on him quickly. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, 'WE DON'T- huh?" She looked where James was pointing. Right at his feet was a hole, hidden slightly by thin blades of undergrowth, that James would have fallen in if he had taken one more step forward. Team Rocket gathered around the hole, which was about big enough for two people to fall into at the same time. They looked into it. It was pitch black. They could see no bottom. James gulped, thinking of the fate he had narrowly avoided.

"Only a hole in the middle of a meadow," said James.

"In the middle of the forest," Meowth added.

"In the middle of Route 119," James inserted.

"In the middle of Hoenn." Jesse finished the phrase. They stared at the hole some more.

"I feel like I heard that before," Meowth thought of their combined sentence, "or read it, or something."

"It's rather poetic," James agreed.

"You know," Jesse said, thinking, "We ought to use this pre-made hole as our trap, instead of digging our own. It'd be a shame to waste such a beautiful one. I mean, what twerp's going to get out of that thing?" Jesse smirked.

"Who could?" James shivered at the blackness of it.

"Let's cover it up then, if we're going to use it!" Meowth cried out.

"Right," James nodded. So did Jesse. Just as Meowth had muttered earlier, Team Rocket had dug many, many holes, but this was helpful experience now, for they all knew what to do to make the existing hole look like solid ground. The two humans and one talking Pokémon split up and did the task they needed to do to make the disguise work.

Jesse and James gathered long, medium sized sticks from the ground, where they had fallen from the tops of the forest trees. They brought the sticks back to the meadow, where together, the two of them wove the branches into a crisscross pattern. The pattern was strong enough to hold a little weight, but not for long. They set the fragile mat over the hole, where luckily, it just extended over the rim on all sides. Meowth had been gathering leaves and weeds around the meadow and made a pile beside the hole. Carefully, the three arranged the foliage on the mat so that all the holes were filled. Meowth then covered their work with dirt and dust. Jesse and James gasped in happiness. There wasn't the faintest clue that a hole had ever been there. They didn't know it, but it looked exactly as it had when two other people accidentally walked on it and fell down the day before.

"It's perfect."

"The best one ever!" James added to Jesse's proclamation.

"Well, what do we's do now that's we're done?" Meowth asked.

Jesse rolled her eyes. "What do you think, Meowth? We watch and wait for them to come and fall in! If we've done it so many times before, you should know that!" Meowth gave her an angry look, which Jesse returned. James didn't notice that the two looked ready to fight again. He was staring at where the hole used to be.

James brushed a strand of hair out of his eyes and nodded. "We wait."

The cavern didn't have to wait long for its human trespassers to wake up.

At the fleeting moment of awakening, Misty didn't remember anything. She forgot about sitting next to Ash to sleep; she forgot about the snowy cavern; she forgot about the Brace Hide-And-Seek game; she forgot about her mental problems about May; she practically forgot she was in Hoenn. She didn't open her eyes first thing, because she felt she was too warm to want to move even the smallest bit. _…Warm…? Wait…shouldn't I… be cold? …The cavern! _She remembered her whole situation in a quick jolt, which was enough information to get anyone to open their eyes. Her eyes met the snow, billowing across the ground, the sharp silver walls, the stalactites and stalagmites. She was still in the cavern. Nothing had changed. _…Then why am I war-_ Misty, despite her heated status, froze. She didn't move after seeing the sight that met her eyes now.

She was leaning, very heavily, on Ash's shoulder.

Her body shook a little bit, from surprise and excitement and a little bit of fear, all rolled up in one. She felt his right arm slung securely around her shoulders and his head being supported by the top of her own. A warm sensation, in the pit of her stomach, flared up. She had felt this intense feeling before, and knew that it was a quick surge of the love that she had for Ash. Misty breathed in heavily. This had to be a dream, but then again, she had to be awake.

Ash was asleep, and Misty wondered, a little anxiously, what he would do or think about the way they were sitting. Suddenly, Misty realized that she herself hadn't done this, leaning against him the way she was. She was certain that she had fallen asleep staring out at the cavern. _Then… Ash did this. …He put his arm around me and… he must have…I…wow._ Misty was stunned, but rapidly excited. If Ash had situated himself and her like this, then obviously he had wanted to. He had wanted to be this close to her. Misty knew that this might still qualify as a 'friendship' kind of thing, but she couldn't help but believe and pray that he had done it for a more loving reason. _There's no reason to be a little embarrassed or scared right now, then. He started this, not me, and besides, we're completely alone. _This thought seemed to strike her harder than it had before. _…We're completely alone. No May… I guess I shouldn't worry about her right now…Just him and me, Misty and Ash, the way… the way it should be. …Alone, but together._

Assured that she had nothing to worry about at the moment, Misty closed her eyes and slowly snuggled her nose into his neck a little bit more. In his deep slumber, Ash tightened his grip on her arm, drawing her closer. She shivered happily. Her hands had been in her lap, but gradually she slipped her left arm behind her and around Ash's waist. This was even more comfortable than it was a moment before. The warm sensation flared up in her stomach again. Misty felt so at peace right now, for she knew more than ever that Ash was the only one she could ever feel this way about. In her imagination, she could almost hear Ash tell her how much he loved her, and how he would always be there for her, and always protect her.

Gradually, Ash felt wakefulness pull on him, and he opened his eyes. Before he even fully woke up, his mind remembered the situation he and Misty were in. He stirred only a little bit, but Misty was too absorbed in amorous thoughts to notice the warning sign. He blinked quizzically, then glanced at Misty. She looked asleep the way her eyes were closed, but Ash wasn't exactly sure. If she was asleep, he didn't want to wake her up, but if she was awake… he really didn't want to move either. The chill of the snow they had trudged through the night before had vanished, replaced by the heat that their touching bodies produced, and Ash was in no hurry to be cold again. Besides that, this was too comfortable to actually want to move anyway.

He let his gaze settle on Misty, and suddenly he remembered looking deeply into her ocean-tinted eyes the night before. There had been a strange jolt in his stomach when he had done so, and now, just even looking at her orange undone hair, he felt a warm sensation, in the pit of his stomach, flare up. Ash was afraid, for again, this felt so familiar and good, but he just couldn't place his mind on what exactly it was. _Misty…_

Ash had a sudden urge to draw her closer to himself, though they couldn't very well get much closer, when he saw her eyes open out to the snowy cavern. So she really was awake. She yawned a small bit, and it looked to Ash as though she had probably been awake longer than he had. He wondered why she didn't wake him up. _Maybe… for the same reason as me…_ He still didn't want to move, but he just had to make her realize that he was awake, too. "Misty?"

He felt her twitch as she heard his voice and looked at him. She seemed unsure of what to say back, or if even to say anything at all. Seeing her face caused the burning feeling in his stomach to return. _What on Earth is wrong with me?_ Unsure of what to do himself, he smiled at her. Immediately, she smiled back at him. "…Hey, Ash." She seemed to think for a minute before quietly asking, "How are you?"

"Fine." Ash wasn't sure what was going on either. "You?" Misty bit her lip, smiled out at the snow, and nodded. The skin below her eyes was the smallest bit pink. They sat for a moment in the stillness and silence of the cavern, both contemplating different but similar things. The mood was somewhat shattered when Ash felt his stomach growl the slightest bit. No matter the situation, calm or dangerous, Ash couldn't help that his appetite wouldn't let him miss or skip a meal. Misty must have heard it, too, (for it would have been a miracle if she hadn't) because suddenly she smiled broadly and started to giggle. She glanced over at him again, and grinned. Ash bit his lip, but started to chuckle along with her. Soon they were both laughing, but still neither one had made a move to get away from the position they were in. Their laughter sounded rather strange in the plain hush of the grotto, so eventually it died out.

"You're awful," Misty muttered playfully. She was so comfortable right now that it was almost too comfortable to stand. She hated to, but finally took her head off of Ash's shoulder and sat up straight.

"It's not MY fault!" Ash retorted good-naturedly back. He hadn't realized that her arm had been around his waist the whole time until she carefully pulled it back into her lap. For the life of him, he couldn't remember that happening the night before. Realizing that his own arm was still around her shoulders, he quickly pulled his arm back into his own lap. "I can't help it that I'm hungry! I haven't eaten since… last night, if it's tomorrow now, or since dinner, or whatever."

Misty snorted. "Well, neither have I, and I'm not growling or anything!"

Ash blushed. "I didn't growl. My stomach did."

"Well, that's a part of you, isn't it? So you did growl!" Ash couldn't really dispute this. Misty grinned and poked him. "I gotcha on that one, huh?"

He poked her arm in return mischievously. "Maybe. Do you think maybe there's some food out there somewhere in this place?"

Misty rolled her eyes and smirked. "In a cave? No, Ash, I'm pretty sure there's not." She was starting to feel a little bit hungry herself, but luckily, her stomach made no noise.

"Well, if you're only 'pretty sure'," Ash reasoned, jumping up from where he was sitting on the rock, "the only way to find out it to look and see!" He bounded off the rock into the snow, and started to hop towards the opposite side of the cavern, which they had not even viewed yet.

"Have fun," Misty called after him. It was rather enjoyable for Misty, watching him frisk about in the flurries.

Ash stopped and turned to look at her, still sitting on the rock. He looked inquiring and upset. "Aren't you coming, Mist?" _I love that nickname_, she thought. Misty shrugged. He was already about thirty feet away. "Come on! Come with me, Misty! I wanna see if there's anything at all over there. What if there's another long tunnel and I don't come back for awhile?"

Misty smiled. He seemed so saddened that she didn't seem to want to come. She got up and leapt down from the rock, and ran towards him, snowflakes flying everywhere. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" He smiled and waited for her to catch up, then went leaping off to the other wall of the cavern. Misty hurried to keep up, pulling the vest that she still wore tighter to herself, looking around at the walls and stalactite-filled ceiling. In a minute or two, they reached the other side and stopped. Off to the left was a fairly wide passageway, just like the others, that had been hidden from view before. With a nod, Ash and Misty agreed to continue on down this way. They started to walk, now, side by side.

After a moment, Misty began to notice that her legs weren't snow-numbed anymore. She glanced down, and saw that now the snow was only just past her ankle. "Hey, Ash. Look. The snow seems to be tapering off now."

Ash looked down to see this truth himself. "Yeah. You could probably almost see the ground if you swooshed all the snow away. I wonder… hey, Misty, do you think this goes somewhere? I mean, maybe the less amount of snow means something?"

"Possibly," was all Misty could truthfully answer, when suddenly, they turned a slight bend in the tunnel. Misty gasped. The snow ran out, and suddenly, there was ice. Across the sixty-foot wide floor in front of them, and as far as they could see, the snowy ground had run out and was replaced by a smooth, flat, milky silver sheet of solid ice. Stalagmites jutted bravely up through the slick surface, and stalactites were dimly reflected in the natural mirror. "Wow! Look at that. Where do you think all of that ice came from?"

"I guess the Ice- type Pokémon around here can use Ice Beam or Sheer Cold or a freezing attack like that."

Misty walked to the edge of the snow and kneeled down, examining the ice. It appeared to be very thick. Misty touched it lightly, and when nothing happened, she hit it with her fist a few times. It didn't break or fissure or crack even the tiniest bit. "This is extremely thick ice," Misty muttered, "I'd guess probably two or three feet thick. Maybe even frozen all of the way through."

Ash walked up beside her as she stood up. "I guess we have to go back then. We can't go any further."

"Why not?" Misty was surprised. She thought of her experience with ice. "My sisters always freeze our gym pool in the winter, so that all of the people in Cerulean can go ice skating. This ice is thick enough to walk on."

Ash was very wary. "I don't know, Misty. We don't have ice skates."

"Well, at least we don't have bare feet. Shoes are okay sometimes, if you can get the hang of it." Misty glanced out at the icy floor again. "You know, if we skate from stalagmite to stalagmite, we can get all of the way across," she sent Ash a sly look, and added "and see if there's any food over there."

"Oh, well, if there's food," Ash muttered sarcastically. Misty giggled.

"At least you're motivated someway," she joked, and Misty chose a stalagmite to aim for. Slowly, she put one foot on the ice and kicked off with the other, sending herself flying across the floor. Ash's heart jumped as she wobbled, but she managed to adjust to the ice and reach the stalagmite. She held onto it with one hand and searched for another to get to.

Ash gulped, but prepared himself to go for it. He didn't need food motivation, only the knowledge that he didn't want to get left behind without Misty. He glided across the floor and grabbed onto the stalagmite, just as Misty shot off from that one to another. She looked back and saw him, though he was standing up straight, hanging on for dear life onto the stalagmite.

"What, are we playing Tag now?" Misty called out to him.

He grinned. "Sure! Hide-And-Seek is so overrated!" Misty laughed.

"Well, you're 'it'!" Misty shouted back, and propelled herself towards the next stalagmite. Ash hurried to follow, though if he was holding on or gliding, he always felt ready to fall. Luckily, he didn't, and, both of them laughing hysterically at many near misses on falling, Ash chased her from side to side, across the icy cavern floor. Ash actually, for one of the first times in his life, forgot about food. He was having too much fun with Misty at the moment to pay attention to his stomach.

As all fun things do, they had to stop when they reached the other side. Ash slid over to the stalagmite Misty was clinging to and poked her. "You're it." Misty nodded, but pointed to the left where there was another tunnel like the first. It too was covered in ice, though they couldn't see the whole area from where they were standing.

"Want to check that out now, Ash?"

"Why not? Think about it. We've come this far. It'd be a shame to turn back now when there's more to see. I mean, who knows what's around the next bend?"

Misty smiled. "Wise words, Ash."

"I know a few, you know."

"I know."

Together, they slowly skated from one stalagmite to the other, Misty waiting for Ash at each one, and Ash waiting for Misty. They made their way into this new cavern. Ash was just past the heart of the cavern before he looked up and saw what made him gasp. He clung to his stalagmite tightly. Misty was right in the middle of skating to Ash when she saw it, too, and forgot about aiming for the stalagmite. Ash heard her coming, and grabbed her left hand as she started to slide past him. They steadied themselves, not even glancing at one another, for this was a sight neither could take their eyes off of.

From the top of the cave wall to their right, came what looked like a huge, fifteen-foot wide waterfall. It shot straight out a few feet before coming down in a graceful arc where it met the icy floor. There were a few things different about this waterfall, though, from a normal one. First of all, it was completely frozen. At least, that is what it appeared to be, though actually, it wasn't even water in the first place. Actually, it was a waterfall of crystals, all in the same precise form, with smooth sides and definite edges. They were arranged like shingles on a roof, half layered on top of each other, their sharp pointed ends sticking out downwards. The crystals were translucent and sparkled in the Flash light of the cavern.

Second of all, they were all a different color.

Each individual crystal was a solid color, utterly different from the ones around it. They were absolutely every color of the rainbow, and every color in between. Neither Ash nor Misty had every seen so many colors in one place in their whole life.

There were reds, bright and crisp like apples, and dull like chipping fence paint or brick, cinnabars, scarlets, vermilions, poppies, azaleas, crimson, cardinals, rubies, and Shuckle-shell reds. There were crystals of an orange tint, of the color of pumpkins, or fire, or leaves, or a Flareon. Yellow hued crystals sported goldenrod, saffron, canary, sulfur, straw, topaz, xanthic, and even a Pikachu-yellow coating. The crystals were green, viridian, celadon, ivy, jade, hunter, sage, lime, peridot, pine, emerald, Treecko-hued, and grassy. The blue hues were multiple, cerulean, cobalt, midnight, sapphire, ultramarine, azure, navy, and colors of the sky and ocean and Tentacool. Crystals of the purple persuasion could be found also, violet, fuchsia, lavender, amethyst, plum, mauve, porphyrous, puce, iris, periwinkle, grape, and Crobat-colored.

There were colors also that didn't very well match a rainbow color category either. Coral, apricot, mahogany, ecruteak, olivine, teal, pewter, turquoise, orchid, burnt sienna, nutmeg, magenta, argent, beige, cianwood, onyx, citrine, blackthorn, columbine, ivory, peach, iron, tan, griseous, hyacinthine, khaki, maroon, morel, russet, sable, burgundy, and colors no one could ever hope to describe. Deep black to light white, there were crystals of every color made before, now, and in the future, and some that no one besides Ash and Misty would ever see again.

Both were completely speechless. The cavern, the whole thing, had had a dream-like quality to it, but now, this crystal waterfall, with all of its colors, was a dream beyond imagination.

"I… I've never…" Ash stammered quietly, "There… there must be hundreds…"

"…Thousands…" Misty countered, not once taking her eyes away.

"…Millions…" Ash blinked, "…well, maybe almost a million…"

"This whole place had only two colors before, you know, silver and white. And now… where did it all come from?"

"I guess there really are a million," Ash muttered.

"Yes," Misty agreed, "This is a cavern of a million colors."

"You think… you want to get closer?" Misty gaped at him. "…I mean, to the crystal things?"

"Oh!" Misty's blush luckily faded and she nodded. "Sure." Ash, who was still holding her hand, gave her a little push towards the crystal waterfall, and pushed off from the stalagmite himself. They slowly slid over to the amazing multihued structure and carefully grabbed on to the crystals to stop. Misty gently ran her hand along some of the crystals in the front, almost trying to feel the colors they were and touch them. Ash pulled himself across the ice and around to the back, where there was space between the 'crystalfall' and the wall. Crystals adorned the whole thing, top to bottom and on all sides.

Ash gazed up, trying to take in the whole scene at the same time, but finding it impossible to do. His eyes panned down unhurriedly. When his sight reached eye level, one of the crystals suddenly caught his attention out of the far corner of his right eye. He felt almost drawn to it. Ash slowly slid across the ice over to it. It was a bluish green crystal, a brilliant color Ash had seen before. He liked the color, loved it in fact, and he tried to place where he had seen it. It was the purest water of the ocean.

Eyes. It was the color of Misty's eyes.

Out of all of the many shades and tints of the same color Ash had noticed on the crystalfall, this one was exactly the color of Misty's eyes. There was no mistaking it for Ash; he knew it was exactly the same. He could remember it from looking into her eyes before they both drifted off the night before. The crystal was it, exactly.

Ash had a feeling that he wanted that crystal, needed it, and as though Ash wasn't good enough for the crystal, he slowly, hesitantly, and delicately touched it. It was cool to the touch, like the others, yet somehow not. Ash put his whole hand around it and was about to give it a tug when it seemingly slipped right out of its hole into his hand. Ash knew the other crystals hadn't been that easy, for he had tugged on them to pull himself around to the back. He examined it.

The crystal was exactly the same in shape and texture as the others. The six sides were five inches long, and about an inch wide, so the middle was in a hexagon shape. At each end, it went down to a point, quite a lot like a pencil that had been sharpened on both ends. Ash could make out the shape of his hand on the other side of the crystal, through the film of aquatic color. It was beautiful and perfect.

Ash felt like he needed to do something with this crystal, not just keep it. _I know… I'll give it to Misty, since it is her eyes. _Ash hid the crystal behind his back and started to pull himself around to the front of the crystalfalls.

On the front side, one of the crystals had suddenly caught Misty's attention. She felt almost drawn to it. Misty slowly slid across the ice over to it. It was a light brown crystal, a brilliant color Misty had seen before. She liked the color, loved it in fact, and she tried to place where he had seen it. It was like the purest russet of the earth.

Eyes. It was the color of Ash's eyes.

Out of all of the many shades and tints of the same color Misty had noticed on the crystalfall, this one was exactly the color of Ash's eyes. There was no mistaking it for Misty; she knew it was exactly the same. She could remember it from looking into his eyes before they both drifted off the night before. The crystal was it, exactly.

Misty had a feeling that she wanted that crystal, needed it, and as though Misty wasn't good enough for the crystal, she slowly, hesitantly, and delicately touched it. It was cool to the touch, like the others, yet somehow not. Misty put her whole hand around it and was about to give it a tug when it seemingly slipped right out of its hole into her hand. Misty knew the other crystals hadn't been that easy, for she had tugged on them to pull herself across the front. Misty felt like she needed to do something with this crystal, not just keep it. _I know… I'll give it to Ash, since it is his eyes. _Misty hid the crystal behind her back and started to pull herself towards the back, when Ash appeared around the side.

"Hey, Ash," Misty said, just as Ash said, "Hey, Misty." They glided towards each other on the ice.

They both went on at the same time. "I got something for you." They both blinked, as their voices combined. "Here." They had done it again, saying the same thing at the same time. Usually, once they accidentally started this, they couldn't stop. This time was no exception. Ash held out the aquatic crystal, just as Misty held out the russet one. With their free hand, they exchanged the crystals, and now held the one that exactly matched their eyes. Both paused for a moment, before explaining, "It's like your eyes." Ash and Misty looked at each other, then at the crystals. _She knows my eyes, too?_ Ash was slightly amazed. _He thought about me?_ Misty was slightly excited. They both looked up at each other at the same time and said, "Thanks."

After a moment, Ash looked at his new crystal again and muttered with a smile, "No Pokémon choreographer could have directed that, huh?" Misty grinned and nodded. She started to laugh. Ash laughed, too. Soon, their giggling filled the cave around them, but no one was there to hear it, further than themselves. Almost.

Across the cave, opposite the colorful crystalfall, from behind a stalagmite in the corner, a violet paw appeared. It sunk its three sharp claws into the stalagmite, and pulled the owner of the paw up a bit farther on it. The Pokémon poked his head around the side, silver hexagon eyes watching two innocent humans putting a crystal each into their pocket. The Pokémon gritted his razor teeth helplessly.

_I warned you,_ the Pokémon thought regretfully, _I warned you, didn't I? Didn't you see my warning, humans? You had to have come in through the ground hole, so you had to have seen it! Why did you come this far? Didn't you bring your own Pokémon with you? _He watched the boy point the opposite way of the exit, and the girl nod. _No, no, no! Whatever you do, don't go that way!_ They started to glide across the ice. _NO! Don't do that! It's dangerous! Come on…_ The Pokémon scratched a pointed ear sadly. _I… I can't go out and stop them. I… what if they tried to capture me? I can't leave this cave! I have work here. But I… I can't let them just be… not like him… my… my human… no. Come back here! Why? WHY? Get out of here while you still can! Go, go, GO! NOT THAT WAY! _The Pokémon almost cried out at them, watching them pass by. He stopped himself before he could. _Maybe… maybe they'll go back… before… before they get there. Please go back. Please._

The Pokémon climbed off of the stalagmite onto the ice. His sharp claws kept him from slipping, so he could walk or climb at his leisure. This was no time for leisure, though. He climbed up onto the flat, slick, un-climbable wall and watched them disappear from view. He gritted his teeth tighter. _Please… I don't want to see you go… the way my master did…That thing… HE shows no mercy to people or Pokémon, only ones of our element type. Go back, humans, please! There's nothing you could do to save yourself… nothing I could do either… he's too strong for me… the evil… _The Pokémon almost cried, thinking of the boy that had raised him. _I tried… I did, master, I did…_

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

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I have to say something: this was a really fun chapter to write, so hopefully this was enjoyable for you to read. By the way, my birthday is on August 7, so please be nice when you review! …What am I saying? You guys are always nice anyway, but make sure to really tell me what you think. Please review!

WHO'S THAT POKÉMON? With a cliffhanger ending like this one, now is a perfect time to play this famous episode-commercial game. Can you guess what Pokémon it is that I described in the last three paragraphs? Read it again to make sure. If you think you know, when you review, tell me what you think it is. The answer is in the next chapter, so this is your only shot at it. Good luck, and who's that Pokémon?

NOTE: How many names of Pokémon cities can you spot in both lists of crystal colors? Also, there is a Pokémon's name, spelled correctly for the color but incorrectly for the Pokémon, in the lists. Can you spot that, too?

NOTE II: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 5's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter.


	6. It Takes A Certain Kind Of Skill

Hi everyone! I'm back with more! But first, I have a lot to tell you! I'm glad I got so many people involved in the games in the last chapter, so now I'm here to give the results. First, Chapter Five's title, the line, "…it's everything I've dreamed about…" is from _Biggest Part Of My Life_, from the Totally Pokémon and the Pokémon 3: Soundtrack CDs. Well done to Tyrano(1), Halfling Rogue(2), J.C. the Wabbit(3), Chibimatchmaker(3), and of course, Sparklewolf (5). For the "city colors" game, the winners are Chibimatchmaker, Crimson of the Blaze, and Ze-Cookie, and the runners-up are gladdecease and Sparklewolf. There were 17 cities (cinnabar, vermilion, azalea, goldenrod, saffron, viridian, celadon, cerulean, violet, fuchsia, lavender, mahogany, ecruteak, olivine, pewter, cianwood, blackthorn). As for the one you've been waiting for, the "Who's That Pokémon?"… I think you can wait until the end of this chap, but don't skip ahead! The Pokémon will be revealed in the story! Thanks again, and on a personal note, thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday! Being 15 is not as bad as I expected it to be, so that's good. By the way, I got a laptop for my birthday, which is what I write my stories on now. Yippee! Also, not only have I pasted the 100-review mark, but also the 100-page mark! This story (including this chap) is now 120 pages! Now it is time to read!

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**CHAPTER 6: … It Takes A Certain Kind Of Skill …**

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Unlike the rest, the very end of the cavern was dark. There was only just enough light, from fading long-ago Flash techniques, to see things clearly by. Though the ice continued on for a little bit, it thinned rapidly and then disappeared, replaced by cold, clear, black water to the rounded dead end wall. Stalactites dripped more heavily here. The walls were more jagged, creating crevices and crannies and holes big enough for small things to live and hide in. Though it was mostly silent out in the caverns above, the silence here was eerie and whispering. Ice-Type Pokémon lived in the brighter, snowy areas above. Ice- Type Pokémon did not live here. 

Ghost- Types did.

The violet-colored Pokémon appeared in this dark end of the cavern from a concealed hole in the top of a wall. The walls of all of the caverns were intricately laced with tunnels, going here and there, to different parts of the caverns. They provided many good shortcuts, as did the one the Pokémon had just used to get from the crystalfall to this place. He sunk his claws into the silver walls, a trick only it seemed he could do, and crawled face-first to the floor. He crouched on the ice solemnly, wondering what to do now. He figured those two kids were probably still coming this way. He shook his head despairingly.

The Pokémon glanced above himself, towards the poorly lit ceiling. Imperceptible shadows wisped back and forth amid and among the stalactites, crossing, colliding, but without so much as a sound. This was not strange. They were almost always there, their skirts wavering in the, literally, 'ghost' breeze. Small, secretive, yet not devious smiles played upon all of their faces. It seemed as though they knew good news you would want to hear, but didn't feel like revealing it for a while, to create a fair amount of suspense. Their eyes sparkled with that same kind of spark. The Pokémon liked to watch them sometimes. The Shuppet.

The dark end of the cavern was a flood of the little Ghost- Type Pokémon. They glided every which way, at the top of the cavern, where they felt the safest. The Shuppet never ventured out of the darkened area into the lighter ones. There was no reason to. They were all of one family; at least, the Pokémon believed they were. He had never asked. He had never guessed how many there were either, but he figured it would be safe to say over a hundred, maybe two. They made their homes in the cracks and crannies in the wall, a very comfortable place, and it always seemed that they were going to visit each other. The Shuppet were rather social. They talked, small smiles on their faces, in murmurs and undertones to almost every other Shuppet they met at the ceiling. This seemed a constant activity, rarely ever ceasing. This was what gave the silence at the end of the cavern its whispering quality.

He was not a Shuppet. However, he got along with them well, and had tried to make friends with them, though this was a hard thing to do. There were too many of them to get to know personally, and he sometimes had a hard time distinguishing one Shuppet from another. Besides, a Pokémon couldn't have a reasonable or rational conversation with them. Their conversations consisted of a sentence, two at the extreme most, and wasn't even a conversation, as it was one-sided. What they said made no sense, either. The Pokémon looked in time to see a Shuppet floating down to him. It hovered, smiling, at face level a moment, before muttering, "Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature...." The Pokémon stared at the Shuppet as it smiled and drifted away. At first he had wondered if they said that kind of thing to confuse him, but he had climbed up the wall to listen to them discuss sometimes. They said the same kind of things to each other too, nothing sensible, but something almost in code. The Pokémon knew, though, that it wasn't a code. It was simply the way they were. After the phrase was exchanged, the listening Shuppet would acknowledge it with an unfeigned acquiescing smile and a nod, then go on its way.

The Pokémon noticed a Shuppet hovering in one place, way lower down than the others. The Pokémon smiled a small bit, though he was not in the mood at the moment. This was the one Shuppet he could tell apart. It looked exactly the same as the others, except for one thing. It didn't smile. The Pokémon had never seen it smile. As far as he knew, it never had. It had never talked, either, and didn't socialize. It simply hovered, watching, watching everything. It's face was completely emotionless and expressionless, except for its frown, which only seemed to be there as an opposite for a smile and not for anger. Its eyes, of all things, betrayed no thoughts or feelings. It simply hovered. The Pokémon, however, was fond of this Shuppet, as he had a feeling that if it talked one day, it would say something sagacious, or at least realistic.

As if knowing what the Pokémon was thinking, the serious Shuppet glanced down at him. The Pokemon's mouth turned up slightly on the ends, his razor teeth showing, and solemnly waved a paw at it in hello. It blinked, but made no sign of recognition, emotion, or thought. It glanced away. This didn't deter the Pokémon one bit. He had something in common with the frowning Shuppet. They were both different, much different from the majority of their species. They were both a lot more serious than Ghost- Types really were and should be, though the Shuppet seemed more pensive and the Pokémon felt more vexed.

The Pokémon glanced down at the ice, after tiring of watching the Shuppet congregating above him. He watched his reflection, a reflection of an extremely distressed Sableye, staring back at him. The thought of the two humans, happily innocent as his trainer had been, had never left him once.

Sableye currently felt cowardly that he had backed down from going out into the open. He could have jumped in front of them, pretended to be wild and vicious, and chased them back towards the other cavern. He had been afraid, though, that they might try to capture him with a Pokéball. He had been irrational in his thoughts, out of anxiety for these new humans, and had just realized that they didn't have any Pokéballs at all with them, not even those already occupied by Pokémon. Just each other, and the crystals. _Besides, _Sableye thought, _A Pokéball would have bounced right off of me. My real Pokéball is probably around here… somewhere. _He cursed himself inwardly for not having thought this sooner. Instead of redirecting them where it was safer, he'd have to stop them before… someone else… saw them.

_Why didn't they read the sign? _he wondered, _Why didn't they leave? I wrote it in English, and my master always said my writing was legible. _Sableye, having the higher-than-average intelligence that he had, had been taught to write fairly well by his trainer. Every time he wrote something, though it did take awhile, his trainer would laugh, call him an Alakazam (which made Sableye blush, for Alakazam have the highest IQ in the world), and say he had the only Pokémon that could communicate in English on the entire Earth. This made Sableye love his trainer all the more than he already had. He had been, after all, his trainer's first Pokémon, and that was a special bond in itself. _Maybe… it was confusing to them…because it was a poem. _His trainer had been a rhyme enthusiast, too, and had gotten his Pokémon hooked as well. He began to wonder if he had something in common with all of the Shuppet after all.

No one knew what their words meant.

_I need to make a more understandable sign. It has all of the information, including what HE told me. _Sableye continued to stare at the ice. _What should I do to stop them when they come this way? If they get close enough, HE will surely see them, and HE won't pass up this chance to get more… _Sableye glanced up, past the Shuppet cluster, past the black water, at the back wall. There were giant, but shallow holes there, pitch black. He gazed at the one in the middle, where he knew that HE was lurking, though he hadn't seen HIM for a while. Sableye felt hatred swell up inside of him. The evil thing… it was his enemy, his curse, his master, and his job.

HE was his enemy, for taking away the thing Sableye loved the most: his trainer. HE was his curse, a curse that had haunted him on how weak Sableye was, when he couldn't protect his most precious thing. HE was his master, ensnaring his mind in remorse and regret. Most of all, HE was Sableye's job. With no trainer and no wish for another, he had nothing left to do but fulfill a sense of duty that he had.

Stopping HIM.

To stop HIM, Sableye had had to betray his morals to uphold his morals. He had tried to make friends… with HIM. It had been the only way Sableye could think of, to find out what HE was planning, for one didn't do what HE had done with no reason. This dreadful act on his own part was only compensated by the fact that Sableye knew that this was what his trainer would have done. His trainer had been the cleverest of people, always thinking up strange solutions quickly to get them out of a fix. The funny thing was… it had always worked… until… Sableye needed to know what HE was planning in order to stop HIM, so he had pretended that the loss of his trainer hadn't hurt him as it really had, that he was glad to be free from battles.

HE had, suspiciously of course, opened up to Sableye. If they had both been of completely different elements, Sableye knew that he would have suffered the same fate as his trainer immediately, but they were, though Sableye was both half-Dark and half-Ghost. This mixed breed status may have caused HIM to be distrustful in the first place, for HE had tolerance only for their shared type. Eventually, HE had explained, no, BRAGGED, about his plans. Sableye had been sick afterwards, thinking of all the destruction and pain HE would cause if the plans were to work. All of humanity seemed to be at stake, with Sableye as its only defender, for now only HE and Sableye knew the plans. The only other Pokémon that were around were the Shuppet, and they probably wouldn't understand the plans anyway if Sableye told them, just happily say a ridiculous quotation to him in return and float away.

There were ways, of course, to stop HIM. Physical force seemed useless. You couldn't use physical attacks against a type like HIM. Evolution would have thwarted HIS plans, but HE evolved by level. HE could have evolved years ago to HIS final evolution, but HE would have lost this evolution's essential special ability, HIS 'skill' as HE called it. Sableye figured that the only way he could make HIM evolve would be to have some sort of all-Pokémon pro-evolving stone, some kind of opposite for an Everstone, but this didn't exist. Sableye had questioned HIM, carefully and in a roundabout way, to look for any weaknesses. HE had suggested or implied none. HE seemed indestructible.

That was why Sableye was still here.

He was still hoping to find a way to stop HIM. The evil thing had to have a weakness, he knew, and it was his job to find out and use it against HIM. Sableye had another job, though: never abandoning his trainer, never leaving the ruins of his trainer here alone, even though HE had taken his trainer away. Sableye was loyal. Very loyal.

Sableye crouched on the ice, unmoving as a stalagmite, lost in his thoughts. His trainer had been clever and strategic and he had been smart and thoughtful, making them a good battling team. _But not good enough, _he though sadly, _for when it mattered the most. Against HIM. _Sableye felt his eyes tearing up, and he wiped away the moisture. He hadn't been this torn up about his master in a long time, for HE was the center of his dutiful obsession. The appearance of the humans had done this to him, but suddenly he felt that this was okay. They would have to be saved, no matter what he had to do. He could almost hear his trainer say, "Remember who you are! You're my Pokémon and I know you can save them!" Was this a memory? …Or not? It had started to make Sableye feel a bit stronger, though sorrow began to envelop him again as soon as the echo began to fade in his mind.

The emotionless Shuppet watched the Sableye through golden-, violet-, and turquoise- striped eyes, eyes that remained detached and impassive to the grief and anxiety the Darkness Pokémon was enduring.

Far less intense anxiety was present elsewhere.

Jesse sighed in anxiety. _The Twerps sure are taking their time getting here, _she thought irritably. She was crouched behind a bush, gazing out at the covered hole in the meadow. There had been no sign of movement from the trees where the group should have come from. Jesse waited for another moment or two, then quickly joined her teammates, who were sitting a few yards away.

All of Jesse and James' Pokémon had been let out of their Pokéballs. Seviper was curled up on the ground, conversing with Cacnea in a quiet purr. Dustox was extending his wings and had attached himself to a tree, which Wobbuffet was leaning against. Meowth was arguing with James about the bet, as James was sorting through and repacking the items in the white backpack he had to carry.

"Besides, why on earth's would some guy go for a girl that's was older than himself?" Meowth was maintaining his case.

James didn't even look up at Meowth from where he was repacking some Escape Ropes, but he noticed Jesse sit down nearby from the corner of his eye. "People don't choose who they love, Meowth. It just happens, and when it does, age doesn't really matter anymore." When Jesse heard what they were bickering about, she immediately shut out the sound of their voices and turned her attention back to watching for the Twerps.

Meowth thought around for a truthful contradictory, found none, and decided to simply get even, rather than retort at all. "So's to peoples, it doesn't matter if'n the guy's is older or not in's a lovin' relationship? That's kind of strange, but you knows, Jim, it's kinda like you and Je-" James quickly covered his mouth to stop him from continuing any further. Meowth burst out laughing as soon as James let go of him, and the skin below James' eyes grew a little bit pink. Jesse didn't hear Meowth's words, but she heard him laughing, so she assumed he had said something stupid. She wished that both of them were a bit more mature sometimes, though she couldn't blame them, for Jesse was obviously older than Meowth and older than James by a month.

Just then, Jesse noticed a bit of movement in the trees. "Hey, be quiet, there," she muttered softly as she crept back over to the bush at the edge of the meadow. Never taking her eyes away from the movement, Jesse waved a hand in James and Meowth's direction. James and Meowth quickly became silent, and joined Jesse behind the bush. Seviper, Cacnea, Dustox, and Wobbuffet all became attentive, but stayed where they were.

Team Rocket didn't have to wait long. "Here come the Twerps," Jesse whispered to her partners. The Cooking Twerp appeared first, glancing down at the PokéNav in his hand as he walked into the meadow. Poochyena, who was carrying Togepi on his back, followed him. The Mini Twerp, as Team Rocket referred to him, came next, with Pikachu on his left shoulder. In the back of the line was the Second Female Twerp, who was glancing around the meadow they had just walked into. The group didn't stop walking. In fact, they seemed to be headed right for the center of the clearing, where the covered-up hole was situated. Jesse crossed her fingers and whispered to herself, "Come on, just a little further… keep going… almost there… no! Don't stop there!" The group of Twerps had stopped a yard or two short from walking over the covered hole. James and Meowth let out the breath they were holding.

"ASH! MISTY!" The Second Female Twerp called into the clear blue sky. A few Pidgey returned the cry, but besides that, nothing.

"May, I don't think that it's going to help anymore," the Mini Twerp muttered. Pikachu climbed down off his shoulder and into his arms.

"Come on, Mini Twerp," Jesse whispered crossly, trying slightly to get inside his brain, "I don't care if we catch the rest of your twerpish friends or not, but as long as you have Pikachu, it's you and Pikachu we need to capture, so walk forward a few more steps."

"You know, I really do wonder where A-, I mean, the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp are," James speculated.

"Be quiet!" Meowth hissed, "I wants to hear what they are's saying."

"I mean, if they haven't answered yet," the Mini Twerp was continuing, "then what are the chances that they are going to now?"

"Well, aren't you smart," the Second Female Twerp muttered sarcastically, though it was apparent that she knew he was right.

"Not just that," the Mini Twerp slyly glanced over at the Cooking Twerp, "I'm wise." He drawled his last word out importantly. The Cooking Twerp chuckled, thinking of the incident that occurred the night before. The Second Female Twerp rolled her eyes, simply thinking that her brother was being stupid.

Meowth's attention had been caught and now he was watching Poochyena, still being ridden by Togepi. The little gray-and-black wolf was sniffing the ground in a very suspicious manner. Meowth saw him walk around the dirt patch that was covering the hole, and inhale its mistrustful scent. He pawed at the dirt warily one time, then once more. Even though nothing happened, Poochyena's eyes were still filled with doubt.

"Hey, you's guys," Meowth muttered, "Don't look now, buts that little Dark- type might have found our trap."

Jesse and James glanced over at Poochyena. "Drat!" Jesse muttered, "What if he makes the cover cave it? Then-"

"-there goes our trap and our chance today," James finished sadly. Team Rocket waited in a tense silence as the Twerps continued to discuss what to do now that they were positive that the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp couldn't hear them.

All of a sudden, Poochyena gave a long low whine. "Ar-uuu?" He pawed at the dirt again. Togepi trilled. The three humans and Pikachu glanced over at them. The Mini Twerp took a step towards them.

"Hey, Poochyena, are you okay?" he asked, concerned. Poochyena glanced down at the dirt again and pawed at it. The Mini Twerp had obviously misunderstood his Pokémon, because he asked, "Is your paw hurt, Poochyena? You keep picking it up off of the ground." He took a few more steps forward. The wolf pup whined, not wanting his master to walk on the ground that had the deceitful smell to it. Mistaking the whine for pain, the Mini Twerp walked forward all of the way to his Pokémon and kneeled down in front of him. Pikachu looked questioningly at Poochyena from the boy's shoulder.

"Yes!" Jesse exclaimed quietly, as James and Meowth high-fived, "Any second it's going to cave in and we'll have them captured!" Team Rocket watched and waited in excitement.

The Mini Twerp picked Poochyena's paw off of the ground and examined at it. "I don't see any thorns or pebbles in your paw, buddy. Is it cut somewhere?" Poochyena shook his head, glancing at the ground again. "Well, then, I don't know what's wrong. Do you want me to carry you?"

"Ar," Poochyena muttered. The Second Female Twerp walked over and picked up Togepi from Poochyena's back. The Mini Twerp gathered his pup into his arms. Pikachu patted Poochyena's head reassuringly.

"So, Brock," the Mini Twerp asked the Cooking Twerp, "shall we keep going?"

The Cooking Twerp glanced down at the PokéNav in his hand. "Yep. I mean, Ash and Misty are obviously not here."

Team Rocket sat, dumbfounded. James was the first to speak. He whispered, "It should have caved in by now, right?"

"Yeah," Meowth affirmed in shock, "That cover should have broken in twos a few seconds after the little Mini Twerp stepped on it. Why on earth is it still holding his weight up? He's gots two Pokémons on him, too!"

"You don't think we made the cover too strong, do you, Jess?" James asked innocently.

"NO!" Jesse exploded in James' ear. He winced. "YOU made it too strong, not me! I don't make stupid mistakes like that!" James sighed. His shoulders slumped. There was just no winning with Jesse. Jesse rolled her eyes and mumbled to herself, "Oh, the incompetence!"

"Well, I guess there's still a chance it might break if'n they walks over it a few times," Meowth suggested. He felt a bit sorry for James being so unfairly subjected to the wrath of the red-headed girl, but if it came between Meowth and James to suffer it, he'd let James take it any day.

"Oh, and what is the chance that they'll just say, 'let's walk over this dirt for no reason a few more times, shall we'?" Jesse snapped, now directing her wrath at Meowth. Meowth sighed, thinking of his somewhat less-than-honorable intentions with his last thought. _…Karma._

"Well, standing here isn't going to get us anywhere," the Second Female Twerp said peppily. She was trying her best to keep the two boy's hopes up. They were both downcast. Togepi trilled.

"You're right," the Cooking Twerp muttered, and he started walking towards the opposite side of the meadow from the way they had come. "Let's go then." The Second Female Twerp followed, holding Togepi securely to her chest. The Mini Twerp remained where he had been standing on the hidden hole-cover to check Poochyena's paw again.

"I just don't see anything wrong with your paw, Poochy," he muttered, holding the paw and feeling it. "You weren't complaining about it this morning. …Oh! I think I know," the Mini Twerp grinned at his Pokémon slyly, "you just want me to carry you, huh? You're pretty spoiled, you know, but anytime you want me to carry you, just ask, okay? You don't have to fake being hurt."

"Ar-u," Poochyena nodded, figuring that his nose had been wrong about the unsafe smell. The Mini Twerp hurried to catch up with his friend and sister as they disappeared into the trees. Then the meadow was bare, free of twerps... and free of holes.

Jesse exploded in anger, as soon as she knew the twerps were out of hearing range. "WHY ON EARTH DIDN'T THAT HOLE CAVE IN!?" She stood up quickly, sending bush leaves everywhere, and making her two cohorts cringe. "THAT'S IT! PACK THE REST OF THE STUFF, JAMES! WE'RE GOING TO GO SEE WHAT WENT WRONG!" Jesse ran back to the spot where Team Rocket's Pokémon were waiting. James and Meowth quickly followed, timidly uncovering their deafened ears. Seviper purred upon seeing his master, but recoiled when he saw her livid face. "SEVIPER! RETURN!" Jesse recalled all of her Pokémon viciously. After all this time, failure still hurt. "DUSTOX, COME BACK! WOBBUFFET, GET IN YOUR POKÉBALL… NOW!"

" 'Sure glad I ain't your Pokémon," Meowth muttered.

Cacnea felt lucky that he had taken a liking to the gentler blue-haired boy and decided to be his Pokémon instead of his friends' master, for James kindly recalled him into his Pokéball with, "Please come back now, Cacnea." James ran over to the opened backpack on the ground, hastily stuffed the remaining items into it, and put it on, just in time for Jesse to grab the front of his uniform collar and drag him towards the meadow. Meowth trailed nonchalantly after them.

James tried to get free from Jesse's grasp, but that was like trying to hold water in your hands. She managed to drag him all of the way through the meadow to the dirt-covered hole, where she let go. James fell down to his knees, and Meowth stood beside him, arms crossed. Putting her hand on the top of James' head to keep her balance, Jesse tested the concealing soil with the toe of her black boot. Nothing stirred. Carefully, she put the whole sole of the boot on the ground and applied a little pressure. The ground didn't budge. James was finally able to stand back up when Jesse let go of his hair and warily stood all of the way on the dirt, ready to leap away at the slightest sag of the cover. It remained firm.

"Too bad we can'ts make a cage to hold Pikachu as strong as'n you made that twig lid," Meowth observed.

"Shut up!" Jesse said resignedly, staring down at the ground beneath her, "It's James' fault, not mine." James looked about ready to retort, but decided otherwise. His neck was still sore from being dragged by the collar forty feet, and he was in no mood for more hostility. Instead, he carefully stepped onto the dirt beside Jesse himself, and waited unsuccessfully for the cover to snap.

"This is kind of strange, you know," James muttered thoughtfully, "We always make the hole covers the same way every time, so why didn't this one cave in like the rest?"

Meowth shrugged. Then, he had a sudden thought. "You's guys," he spoke, his voice questioning, "Do you's thinks maybe we've been watchin' the wrong dirt patch this whole time? I mean, I knows that one spot you both are standing on is in the middle and everything, but maybe the one we covered was a little bit farther from here." This was a good question, for although it was the biggest and in the middle, there were a few other dirt patches scattered about the forest meadow.

"Well, maybe," Jesse replied, glaring about, hands on her hips.

James glanced at the ground suspiciously. "I was… sure it was this one," he answered feebly.

"Oh, well, this is just great, isn't it?" Jesse began to rant in frustration. Meowth, feeling a long tirade in the works, turned his back to Jesse and crossed his arms. James adjusted the backpack strap and tried to listen patiently. "Now we're in the middle of this forest, probably lost, and in this stupid meadow, surrounded by ground that could potentially cave in anywhere and at any moment! And even worse, WE DIDN'T CAPTURE PIKACHU! This is ridiculous! So this is the way it's going to be now, huh!? Everything just keeps going downhill, doesn't it!? Now the Twerps don't even have to attack us anymore for us to fail miserably! We can fail without any help!" Impulsively, Jesse stomped her foot on the dirt, and a small wisp of dust spun through the air around her boot.

Unnoticed, a small crack in the ground made its way from the point of impact.

"Now, Jesse," James tried to be reasonable without being too intrusive into her monologue, "There will be other opportunities to capture Pikachu." The crack grew and branched out, and spread under James' feet, too. "I mean, would it really be fair to steal Pikachu when A- I mean, the Main Twerp isn't there? Anyone could steal a Pokémon without their trainer there, but it takes a real criminal to steal a Pokémon out from under a twerp's nose, and don't you want to show the Boss that we're REAL criminals? See, Jess, it just wouldn't be fair!"

Jesse thought rationally for a moment. "That's true."

"Yeah," Meowth interjected, not even bothering to glance at his teammates, "but since when has Team Rocket ever been fair? I thought that un-fairness was our motto, well, I mean, besides the one we say every time."

Jesse considered this idea. "That's true, too."

"Well, me and Jimmy can't both be right, 'ya know," Meowth surveyed the sky, clear except for a few fluffy clouds.

"I KNOW! Give me a second to think, WON'T YOU!" Jesse's eyebrows furrowed as she deliberated in her mind on which side to choose.

Unnoticed, the cracks met and the ground started to crumble. As he and Meowth waited for an answer, James felt a strange sensation under his feet. Curiously, he glanced down. The cover, which they truly were standing on, started to sag. James tapped Jesse on the shoulder, and crossly, she glanced down, too. The lid of the hole suddenly started to give way under their combined weight. Both Jesse and James' sapphire and emerald-colored eyes grew wide. Abruptly, the sticks snapped, the cover completely disappeared from under them, and for a fourth of a split second, they gazed upon a giant, gaping, pitch black hole. Jesse and James fell, straight down, feet first, into the opening. They both cried out in fright, and instead of intelligently grabbing for the rim of the hole, grabbed each other, thinking that the other wasn't falling, too. This didn't help them in the slightest. They disappeared into the dark tunnel, and were gone without a trace, except for the dust billowing around the opening for a moment, before it settled into the grass.

Meowth hadn't seen what had happened. When he heard their cries, he simply assumed that James probably had done something to irritate Jesse and was being beat up for it. Because Jesse hadn't answered his comment yet, Meowth went on to say, "You's know, I've been thinkin', and I think that the dirt you all are's standing on is actually the real hole. What's I mean is, that Mini Twerp's Poochyena was a'sniffin' 'round here a lot, so I guess he had to have smelled the trap, you's know?" Silence greeted Meowth's ears. "…Jesse? …James?" He glanced around at them, to find that they weren't there.

Meowth walked a few steps toward the dirt, just to find that the cover was gone. His mouth hung open in shock, and his shoulders slumped. He blinked several times. "…O…kay…" Meowth carefully peeked over the rim of the hole. It was pitch black, and deafeningly silent. "…Jesse? James? Are you there?" His quivering voice echoed softly once, before being consumed by the darkness. _I guess… that hole was deeper than we's thought._ Meowth sat down next to the rim, never taking his eyes away from the hypnotizing blackness. _What am I going to do now? _He was uncomfortably aware that he was all alone. _I guess… I'll just wait for them's right here to come back up. James has all of them Escape Ropes in that backpack, so they should be able to gets out easily. …I can't go back to our balloon, neither, 'cause James has that remote to bring the balloon, too. Gee, it's kind of sad that I don't have nothin' at all with me. Maybe I oughta get mine's own backpack. …Jesse didn't even leave her old Wobbuffet for company, how selfish. _Meowth sighed.

_Well, I's hopes they aren't gone down's there too long._

"We've been gone down here way too long, Ash,"

Ash nodded in agreement. "I know," he muttered, sliding over to the stalagmite Misty was hanging onto.

"Do you think we'll ever get out of here?"

"Of course. Well, it's not so bad in here, you know, as long as it doesn't get any colder." Ash and Misty pushed off from the stalagmite, sliding more skillfully now across the ice, and grabbed onto the next one a few yards over.

"Well, I mean, I like it in here, too," Misty explained, "That waterfall thing of crystals was absolutely stunning!" She glanced back over her shoulder where they had left the millions of color crystals behind. It was out of sight.

"…A 'crystalfall'," Ash smiled, combining the two words.

Misty's face lit up excitedly. "Oh, Ash, what a beautiful word!"

He blushed a little bit. "Thanks." Ash slipped his hand in his jeans pocket and touched the russet crystal Misty had given him. The crystal was still pleasantly cool to the touch. Ash was still trying to get over the fact that Misty knew the color of his eyes. The knowledge made him feel pleased. Why this was so, Ash wasn't sure. Suddenly, he realized how much he had been thinking about Misty since she came back, especially the last day or so. _I guess that saying, 'Separation makes the heart grow fonder,' is true… whatever 'fonder' means. _He glanced quickly over at Misty. Suddenly, the warm sensation, in the pit of his stomach, flared up again. For only a split second did he think it might be hunger, before dismissing the thought. Deep in his mind, he knew it had something to do with Misty, but what it meant was out of his range at the moment. He remembered only a few times in his whole life having felt this, and now, in the last few hours, he had felt the feeling four times. He clearly remembered one moment he had felt this, but when he went to think of the memory, it slipped out of his grasp.

The two glided over to the next stalagmite. _She looks nice in my vest, _Ash thought randomly, watching the vest sweep out a bit behind her as they slid on the ice. Ash felt puzzled. He felt he was thinking too much, perhaps. Or perhaps, not thinking enough.

Misty slipped her hand inside of Ash's vest's pocket and touched the azure ocean crystal Ash had given her. The crystal was still pleasantly cool to the touch. Misty had continued to be elated that Ash had thought about her. This was exactly what she wanted… as long as it was good thoughts. Thinking back to all of the events that had happened since they had fallen into the hole, Misty realized that Ash had been thinking about her the whole time. All of the things he had done for her… giving her the crystal, making sure she was warm when they slept, trying to save her from falling down the third hole, giving her his vest, asking what was worrying her, holding her hand, hugging her to make sure she was alright… he had been thinking of her, trying to make her happy, caring for her. It was almost as though he felt the same thing for her as she felt for him. Misty had given the thought of 'Ash loves me back' a few skims before, then brushing it away as outlandish, but now she began to seriously wonder. Everything didn't seem 'only friend'-like. It seemed… more.

Misty wanted so badly to know how Ash felt about her. However, she had always had, but she knew that she would have to be the one to say something first, yet she couldn't for fear of rejection. _Such an endless cycle of pain and worry, _Misty thought melodramatically. Perhaps, though, the situation was as dramatic as she thought.

They slid to the next stalagmite, then the next, and further still to the one after. It slowly dawned on Ash that the light in the cavern was gradually starting to dim the further they went. Ash paused, about to tell Misty what he had noticed, when Misty slid to the next stalagmite, and looked back at him, calling, "Come on, Ash! You're slowing down!"

Misty pushed off of her stalagmite backwards, still looking at him. Suddenly, Ash's heart stopped. Misty was sliding unknowingly towards… nothing. To Ash, in watching Misty, he had suddenly noticed that the ice seemed to end a few feet away from the stalagmite Misty had just pushed off from. The cavern continued, and a left turn looked apparently just ahead, but it seemed as though the floor suddenly disappeared. "MISTY!" Ash pushed off and slid towards her as fast as he could. Misty glanced behind herself, saw the problem, and let out a cry of alarm.

"ASH!" As her feet slid towards the edge, Misty reached out her hand to Ash. He grabbed onto her fingers with one hand and the stalagmite with the other at the same time. Misty's feet slid right off and she fell, Ash's arms going taunt. Misty glanced down and saw that the ice hadn't ended; it had steeply sloped down in almost an unimaginable way. The ice went down at a fifty degree angle for about forty feet, then leveled off completely again and continued that way to the bend in the cavern. Remarkably, a few stalagmites had managed to form, jutting up through the slanted ice.

When Ash saw that Misty wasn't going to fall to her doom, he wasn't as fearful, but he still tried to pull her back up next to himself. This didn't work well, seeing as Misty was face down on the slanted ice on her stomach, clutching his fingers tightly with both hands. Forgetting that he was standing on ice himself, Ash let go of the stalagmite so he could use both hands to pull her up. Immediately, he realized his mistake and tried to re-grab the stalagmite at the same time, but ended up being pulled over the edge face-first on his stomach.

Misty looked up, frightened, at Ash as they began to slide speedily down the ice. She gripped his hand tighter. The cavern began to flash by in an almost unrealistic way, everything a blur. The seconds ticked by quickly, but it seemed like hours. Ash glanced past Misty and saw that she was going to run into a stalagmite any second. Quickly taking action, Ash jerked his body to the left, ending up sliding on his left side, jerking Misty by the hand he was still holding. In the process of sliding faster, Misty was jerked all of the way around so that she was going down face first on her left side, too. She barely missed the stalagmite, and she crashed backwards into Ash's arms in the same second. Ash let go of her hand and put his arm around her protectively as he glanced in the direction they were headed to look for anymore obstacles. It had been less than ten seconds since they had begun to slide, but it had seemed an eternity already.

The rest of the way in front of them was clear. Misty glanced back and caught sight of the stalagmite that had almost struck her in dismay. The force of her collision into Ash had sent them turning, and now they were sliding with their backs to the direction they were headed. Wind whipped across them ruthlessly, blowing Misty's short orange hair back into her face and blinding her. Ash managed to put his other arm around her and hold her close to himself defensively. In his mind, a grateful thought flashed through, glad that if they actually did hit a stalagmite, he would be the one to hit it and not Misty. However, the longer and faster they slid, the closer they got to the bottom and the less chance there was of them hitting something.

Suddenly, the ice underneath them was level, their speed decreased, and they slowly slid to a stop, still on their left sides. When they came to a stop, Ash realized that he had been holding his breath the entire time. He sighed deeply, and relaxed his hold on Misty, who was still trying to get all of her hair out of her face. Ash took another breath, then carefully sat up. Misty rolled onto her back and sat up, too. They glanced up at the ice slide they had just slid down. It looked higher from down there than it had at the top.

Misty turned her head to face Ash. Ash glanced over at her and saw she was smiling. In a sarcastic voice, she muttered, "Well, Ash Ketchum, that was awfully heroic," but her eyes gave her away. Ash could see how thankful she was that he had saved her from being impaled by the stalagmite.

"Well," Ash explained, grinning, "I couldn't let you get hurt, now, could I?"

The thought of 'Ash loves me back' went through Misty's head a few times again as she began to genuinely wonder. "Nope!" Ash laughed, until suddenly he found Misty's arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. "Thank you, Ash," she whispered in his ear, "for saving me."

Ash was gratified beyond reason, but gratification just didn't justify Ash's stomach, as it began to burn with the mysterious sensation that kept plaguing him. His face bright pink, he tried to shrug her comment away, mumbling, "Well, I mean, uh, I, uh, I save a lot of things, you know. I save people, I save Pokémon, I save Brock from having to carry so much food around… I save the world every now and then, too…" Giving in, he gradually put his arms around Misty's neck, as well.

It was strange how events seemed to keep going from one to the other in an instant.

All of a sudden, Misty noticed the silence. It wasn't the crisp silence that existed comfortably in the caverns above, or even in the icy floored chambers they had just come from. It was a silence that seemed to echo itself. It was… eerie… and whispering…

Ash noticed it, too, and they slowly undid their arms from around each other to listen to it better. As one, their eyes seemed to be drawn towards the leftward bend in the cavern. The sound of silence… it was coming from that direction. Its pull on their curiosity was great and powerful. The sense of deep horrific foreboding that filled both of them unfortunately did nothing to decrease this inquisitiveness.

Misty twitched suddenly. "Ash." He glanced at her puzzled face. "It's darker here." Ash nodded, noticing that the light had dimmed a substantial amount in this area. Their eyes' attention returned to the continuation of the passage. They sat on the ice in stillness, contemplating the inevitable of a venture to this new area.

"I know… I guess… a lot of Ice- Type Pokémon that know Flash don't come down here often."

"Do… do you think other types of Pokémon might live here, too?" Misty questioned, suddenly struck with the thought.

"…Maybe…"

Their lack of conversation contributed to the silence for a moment.

"Let's…" Misty began, but trailed off.

"…keep going, then," Ash finished for her. After a long drawn-out pause, Ash reached out for a stalagmite that was nearby, and pulled himself up onto his feet. He held Misty's outstretched hand as she got to her feet herself. They did this all without glancing away from the next tunnel.

"Here we go," Misty whispered to herself in ominous premonition. She and Ash kicked off of the stalagmite, and slowly glided towards the turn. "Ladies and gentleman, will you please fasten the seat bar across your lap securely? We don't want anyone falling off this coaster. Remember, keep your hands and feet inside the car at all times. Also, do not stand up or unfasten your lap bar until the car has come to a complete stop. By the way, feel free to scream at any time. Thank you, and enjoy your ride." Ash chuckled softly and gently at Misty's whispered ill-omened rant. He felt exactly the same way.

Terrified.

Yet there was nothing to do but go forward.

They had come that far, so why turn back now?

Just because it was a bit dark and a wee bit spooky didn't mean anything. Right?

Right?

It was Ash's pride that caused him to violently banish those dark thoughts away and continue forward. He didn't want Misty to think he was scared of the dark or anything. He had a feeling that he wanted to impress her, which made no sense in his mind why he would want such a thing. Perhaps it was because she had just called him 'heroic'.

Ash took the lead. Both of Misty's hands were latched onto Ash's left arm tightly. For the moment, she didn't care what he thought about it, but it would have pleased her if she had known that Ash was glad that she was holding onto him. Misty wanted the strength and security that Ash's presence had always secretly given to her. She needed it from him at the moment.

Ash needed it from her, too. He slowly realized, as they cautiously made their way towards their destination, that his heartbeat was throbbing loudly in his head. It didn't seem to shatter the silence so much as to increase it in some mysterious way. He was certain that Misty probably heard it, too, until he realized that she was probably hearing something else pounding in her ears.

Her own heart.

After a few more push-offs from stalagmites, they were at the opening. With a quick, resolute glance at each other, Ash and Misty kicked forcefully off from the last stalagmite they were at, which sent them past the turn and swiftly towards the unknown.

They looked up at the scene before them, and gasped.

"It's…" Misty sputtered quietly in Ash's ear, "It's the end… It's… the very, final end… of the caverns." The end of the caverns was very dark, and their eyes were barely able to penetrate it. The silver marble-patterned walls were covered, especially at the top, in small crevices and crannies and holes. Ash could see bigger holes in the end wall, and below those holes was a giant lake of clear, black, seamless water. He gave a fleeting nervous glimpse down at the ice that he and Misty had slid to a stop on, and saw that it was thinner than before, though still not breakable.

Automatically, their eyes shifted to the ceiling and they jumped a bit in fright. A few yards away, high above them, scores of small airy shadows wisped their way back and forth between the stalactites, omitting soft noises of speech, which Misty slowly realized was the whispering sound.

"…Pokémon…" Misty observed quietly.

"…They're, um… those are, uh… Shuppet, I think. …Yeah, those are Shuppet. … A Ghost-Type." Ash and Misty stood in a respectful silence for a moment, simply watching the small creatures' actions, noticing their contented smiles, and gazing at their fluttering skirts in a kind of awe. They forgot that they had been afraid of what they might find here. Ash noticed one Shuppet out of the corner of his eye. "Check that one out, Mist." He nodded towards it, and Misty gazed at the hovering Pokémon that was lower down than the rest. It was watching them carefully, a light frown on its face, though Misty couldn't identify the expression that it was sending them. Ash gazed intently at its eyes, and in disappointment, found he could not tell what it might be thinking of them, either. It seemed like it was the only Pokémon that had noticed their arrival. It wasn't.

There were two more.

Suddenly, there was a small scratching noise, like the sound of something scrambling to get somewhere quickly. Ash's heart leapt into his throat in panic, and Misty's fingernails sunk painfully into his arm, but they stayed still, Ash nervously resting his hand on a nearby stalagmite. All at once, from behind a stalagmite to their left, a creature came cantering out on all fours across the ice. It stopped a few feet in front of them, and stood up on its back legs, looking at them.

"…A Sableye!" Ash whispered, as much to himself as to Misty, for this Pokémon looked slightly different from the one Ash had seen before. First of all, this Sableye was bigger than the other, though not around the waist. It was rather thin, almost as in malnourishment, but its legs and arms were very long and graceful. To his surprise, when the Sableye stood up, Ash saw that the Pokémon was only about a head shorter than Max was. Most Sableye were definitely much shorter. The Sableye in front of him was obviously a very high-level and powerful Pokémon. The second thing Ash noticed was the lack of a mischievous air that he, after many experiences, had always associated with Ghost- Types, including the Sableye he had already encountered. There were worry lines etched thinly across its forehead, and there were small bag lines under its eyes, as if from lack of sleep. Its arms, though graceful, were attached to slumping shoulders. Its mouth, slightly exposing its razor sharp teeth, was turned down at both corners. It looked anxious, depressed, and tired all at the same time.

Ash had no time to make more observations, for the Sableye was trying to communicate something to them. "Sableye! Sable sable sableye!" Its voice was whispering and cracked, as if it wasn't often used. It waved its claws at them in a shoo-ing kind of way. Both Ash and Misty felt no fear of this Pokémon, and instinctively knew that it was a friend, of which they had much need for at the moment.

"Hi, there, Sableye. Where did you come from?" Ash said in an affable tone. A few of the wandering Shuppet noticed the two human intruders at the sound of Ash's voice, and sent them welcoming smiles before turning back to their eccentric public affairs. A low hiss escaping from between its teeth, the Sableye held a claw up to its mouth to shush them. Ash and Misty's grins slightly faltered. The Sableye was looking over its shoulder towards the back wall in a considerably panicky way. It glanced back at them, and made the shoo-ing motion again. Ash and Misty exchanged confused and somewhat worried looks. "What's wrong, Sableye?" Ash whispered, hoping his tone was better.

"Sableye!" Sableye muttered in his normal raspy voice, fretting. He placed his claw back over his lips, as if saying that whispering was still too loud.

Misty carefully squatted down on the ice to get closer to his (for she presumed the Pokémon to be a male) level, though the Sableye was now taller than her. "Is something the matter, Sableye? It kind of looks like you want us to leave." Sableye nodded in answer to both sentences, gently putting a paw on her lips to stifle any further vocal communication. With his left paw, he gestured vaguely towards the back wall, then pointed directly back the way they had come in a commanding manner.

Ash, running his hand gently down the stalagmite, squatted down on the ice beside Misty. Sableye's silver hexagon eyes were pleading with Ash, and he knew that there was something back in the back wall that the Darkness Pokémon didn't want them to see. Ash's chivalrous nature kicked in, and he whispered as low as he could, "Whatever the matter is, Sableye, we can help you. I'm Ash, and this is Misty. Please show us what's wrong. We want to help you. You're the only nice Pokémon we've run into in these caverns, so we shouldn't leave you if you need help."

Unfortunately, everything that Ash had just said was actually unhelpful to Sableye. _Oh, great, _Sableye thought despairingly, _They told me their names. Now, if they're taken away like my… master was, I'll know who exactly I'm mourning and feeling regretful over. They think that they can help me? How? With what? They don't even have anything with them! I'm the only nice Pokémon that they've run into? Who did they meet, that crazy unstable Sneasel in the top cavern?… what a weirdo… Anyway, if I'm the only nice Pokémon they've met so far, _he glanced over his shoulder at the biggest darkest hole in the wall, _there's a good chance I'll be the only one, too. _

Ash and Misty waited with bated breath for Sableye to try to communicate some reply. He finally turned his forlorn face back to them, and shook his head in refusal of their offer. "But, Sableye-" Misty began, but Sableye shushed her again.

"Sable." He pointed past them towards the exit. He had clearly said 'go', but both Ash and Misty were very hesitant to make a move. Their curiosity was overcoming their trepidation again, especially for Ash. Ash slowly stood up and helped Misty get back up onto her feet. They stood there for a moment, watching the distressed Sableye as he watched them, waiting for them to turn around and leave. Ash felt a prickling sensation run across his body. He began to hear the thumping of his heartbeat again.

"Sableye…" Ash said uncertainly, "…What's back there? …In that hole?" Sableye, his eyes wide and lips pressed tightly together, shook his head slowly in a forbidding manner. _Oh, huma-… Ash, you said? …You don't want to know… _

"Ash. …Ash!" It took Ash a moment to realize that Misty was whispering urgently in his ear. He felt her ragged and nervous breath gently stirring the ends of his messy black hair. "Ash, I think… I think we should do what the Sableye says, Ash. I think… I think we should get out of here… now!" She was clutching fearfully onto his left shoulder. He looked into her azure eyes quickly and saw how scared she was. That sealed his decision.

"Don't worry, Sableye," Ash muttered, his eyes not leaving the black hole, "We're going." He turned around, thoughtlessly taking Misty's hand to reassure her. He heard the Sableye give a great sigh, of both relief and sorrow. Ash was about to kick off of the stalagmite, when all of a sudden, there were rustling sounds behind them. Ash and Misty turned slowly back and saw that the Shuppet were in a commotion.

Every one of them were suddenly in a rushing flurry. Their soft signature smiles never left their faces, but their foreheads became wrinkled in worry. They swooped and glided and flew across the cavern ceiling, colliding every few seconds with another of their kind. Ash and Misty observed them in mystification as they hurried into the crevices and crannies and holes in the wall, and didn't reappear. Ash glanced over at the one frowning Shuppet, who had seemed almost completely unaffected by the haste, and saw an anxiously smiling Shuppet quickly hover over to it. The worried Shuppet nudged the first gently, and when the frowning one didn't stir, it took the unresponsive one's skirt in its mouth and gave a short tug. The frowning Shuppet seemed to wave the anxious one away by billowing its skirt out harder, until finally, the anxious one, still smiling, gradually flew back into the fray, having failed at its mission. Suddenly, a quick glance around showed a strange scene. The Shuppet were gone, hidden in the walls. The ceiling was bare, exposing a few stalactites, and a few broken stalactites, probably busted by generations of colliding little Ghost- Types. The remaining frowning Shuppet had backed itself against the wall, and was hovering there in an inanimate way.

The Sableye gasped, and began breathing very hard. Suddenly, Misty realized that the disappearance of the Shuppet probably wasn't a very common event. "Ash… I don't think this is good." Ash nodded.

Then, from the very depths of the center hole in the back wall, came a low growling. Sableye shuddered, and stood there shaking. Ash and Misty felt shivers run down their spines. Ash could feel Misty's right hand interlocking his and her fingers together, so he squeezed her hand back. The three watched the hole with a mixture of wariness, confusion, curiosity, and terror. Sableye backed up until he was pressed back against the two people's legs.

The atmosphere in the cavern, cold as it had always been, suddenly became colder and harder to breath. Ash and Misty almost choked on the change in the air. Suddenly, something was visibly stirring inside the hole. Ash heard the Sableye whisper something to himself. "Not… the Evil One… HIM…" Ash wished he knew what the Sableye had just said, but he could tell by the look on his face that it was something bad.

From inside the hole, the growling had ceased, and was replaced by the eeriest silence that ever was. Then, as if from out of a deep fog, a figure slowly appeared. Its spiky, thorny outline was the first thing to become visible, followed by the emergence of two limp hands with four sharp lethal-looking claws. Ash and Misty gasped slightly when they saw that the hands… weren't attached to anything. The lavender skin of the figure began to show up. When it had fully appeared, it glided out to a high spot over the black water. Out of the shadows had materialized a…

Haunter.

Yet this, like the Sableye, was no ordinary Haunter.

He was only a small bit larger than he was supposed to be, but his lavender skin wasn't the deep color of normal Haunters, but a light lavender, gelled over by a light gray. The rest of the Haunter was not so attractive. His fading tail was long and ragged and despite its color, his coat was oily-looking and wasn't in top shape. His most noticeable prominence was his eyes. The black pupils, unlike the normal small dot, were very thick and striped, dividing the eyes into sections of white, black, white. Along the outer rim of the black pupils was a vermilion glow that was very startling. Most frightening of all was the long vertical black scar that cut across the Haunter's left cheek, across his left eye, and halfway up his forehead.

He had appeared out of the gloom in a very nightmarish way. He was not smiling, but when he set his piercing gaze upon Ash and Misty, the corners of his lips slowly turned up into an aggressive closed-mouth grin. He hovered a few feet lower, so that he could size the two anxious humans up better. To Ash, Haunter's strange eyes seemed to bore right into his own eyes and find out everything about him instantly. Misty couldn't keep her own eyes away from the painful looking scar that had sliced his fearsome face.

Spreading his detached hands wide in an ersatz hospitable manner, Haunter greeted Ash and Misty with, "Ah! New friends! Welcome! Welcome, strangers! How delightful to see new faces every now and then!" Though they couldn't understand his speech, Ash and Misty comprehended its meaning by the tone of his voice. It was a smooth wispy voice, very gentlemanly, suave, rather charming, and yet as misleading as Mawile's Fake Tears. Turning his attention to Sableye, who was breathing heavily through his nose, Haunter smiled a motherly sort of smile and said, "Dear friend Sableye! How nice of you to bring me some visitors! I know that you know how much I love company, especially company of a… non-ghostly sort, eh? You know, you yourself, dear Sableye, ought to come by and visit me more often, for you know we have SO much to chat about."

The Ghost Pokémon's falsely friendly manner made Ash jittery. He wasn't sure exactly what was happening, but he knew that Sableye hadn't wanted Haunter to see them, and Sableye was a friend, so Haunter, no matter what his tone, wasn't to be trusted. Sableye was staring at Haunter, the one that he had always called HIM, blank-faced. _I… I did. …I did lead them right to HIM… by not stopping them. …I can't believe it, after all I've done and all I've worked for… I can't believe it. _

Haunter was staring at Sableye's disbelieving face. In a somewhat sorrowful tone, he said, "Sableye, I'm terribly sorry to say this, but I'm afraid that you should leave for a while. I have some plans, which I having been planning just now, to attend to, now that some visitors are here. I'd love for you to stay and watch, for there is no way you could help, but I remember how… squeamish you were that last time I had some things to discuss with company." When Sableye made no move, but remained pressed against Ash and Misty's legs, he said plainly, "You're in the way, dear Sableye."

Now was the moment of decision for Sableye. If he tried to save this Ash and Misty that were standing in horror behind him, then he would blow the callous cover that he had been working on so long to build to deceive Haunter. If he let Haunter go ahead and take them… his conscious would be shattered forever, and he wasn't sure how much more guilt he could hold within himself…

"No."

"Eh?"

"No. I… I won't let you touch them." Shaking his head slowly, Sableye spread his arms out in defense of Ash and Misty. "I won't let you harm them. They have done nothing to you."

"I'm really afraid that you have no say in the matter, my friend. I have things to attend to." Haunter's debonair attitude never wavered.

"…No."

"You know my plans, Sableye, and you know what they require." After a short pause, he continued, with a small omniscient gleam in his red-rimmed eyes, "Besides, I thought that you didn't care, especially now that you are free from your old slavery and are able to live your own life."

"MY MASTER WAS MY LIFE!" The rage, the hatred, and all of the loathing feelings that Sableye had for Haunter were exposed in those six syllables. Sableye's defense had snapped. The screech rang throughout the cavern, echoing several times. Even Ash and Misty, who were lost on the exact words of the conversations, understood the bitterness that was the essence of the five-word sentence.

Haunter's only reaction to the cry was a raised eyebrow. "Ah, now you've decided to tell the truth, eh, my comrade? It's about time!" His courteous air began to slowly disappear. "It was getting horribly boring pretending that I didn't know of your perpetual loyalty to your deceased master. In addition, you should know that the only reason you're standing right here before me, ALIVE, is because of your half Ghost-ness, but I think you already knew that. Those Shuppet, they don't bother me in the least, nor would any Ghost of course, but you know that saying, 'until good plans are ripe, never trust a Dark- Type'? I believe that they were talking about Absols with their tragedian emergences, but I believe I could apply that to you, eh, Sableye?"

Sableye stood there in a stunned silence as the Gaseous Pokémon continued in a harsher tone. Neither Ash or Misty, half-spellbound by his extraordinary eyes, nor Sableye, spellbound by his speech, noticed the Pokémon growing ever closer to where they were standing. "You thought I would accidentally tell you a weakness I have, answering your little circuitous questions? Ha! I have no weakness in the first place! You thought I actually learned to trust you? Ha! I trust no one but the voice in my own brain… me! I'm truly sorry to disappoint you, Sableye, but if you thought you were on to MY game, I was onto yours the instant you and your dim-witted master stepped into these areas that brief time ago." Then, in an almost childish manner, he added, "I'm not stupid." Haunter grinned the wickedest grin that any of the three had ever seen.

"I WON'T LET YOU TAKE THEM AWAY!" Sableye shouted courageously. "I'LL… I'LL BATTLE YOU!"

Haunter laughed loudly. "Sableye, Sableye, Sableye! You JUST don't learn, do you? Don't you remember last time you and I matched our skills? You remained terribly injured, all banged and bruised up, unable to move, for weeks after, and I STILL obtained your master! You haven't gotten any stronger, I can tell by your skinniness, but I certainly have. You, a rock-eater in a cave, should have an easier time getting energy that me, but you obviously waste a lot of your time thinking. Of course, you know how much I think and plan myself, but I'm prepared for action, and that action is ready to start… NOW!"

Suddenly, Sableye lunged in pure rage at Haunter, who had begun to swoop down on Ash and Misty at his last word. Haunter disappeared in a zap, using his Teleport technique to dodge to the side, and Sableye hit the ice face first. Fortunately, the Darkness Pokémon prevented himself from sliding across into the water by sinking all of his sharp claws into the ice. Haunter Teleported himself back to his original position and smiled coldly at Ash and Misty. Slowly he began to advance upon them.

"RUN!" Sableye shrieked at them wildly. Ash and Misty understood the message instantly, and Ash kicked fiercely off of the nearby stalagmite and skimmed the icy floor towards the exit, pulling Misty along with him. Haunter was about to take after the two humans when Sableye sent a powerful Shadow Ball attack straight for the 'Evil One'. Violet laser rays from Haunter's eyes combined and sent a Psychic attack at the oncoming Shadow Ball. Only ten attack points stronger, the Psychic attack obliterated the Shadow Ball and sent Sableye rolling into the stalagmite that Ash and Misty had just left behind.

The collision with the stalagmite and the attack lowered Sableye's hit point substantially, but he was unwilling, no, unable to give up the fight that easy, so strong and high was his emotions. Crawling back up onto his feet, Sableye was just able to pull off a successful Detect technique and dodge Haunter's incoming Night Shade attack. Fully knowing that Haunter could disappear in a split second, Sableye recklessly gave a great leap at Haunter again, thinking of hitting him with a Dark- Type Faint Attack, a good attack against a Ghost. However, Haunter had different plans.

Seeing him coming, Haunter balled his left dismembered hand into a tight fist, and hit Sableye with an almighty smack on the side of the face when Sableye was almost upon him. The force of the improvisational attack sent Sableye flying across the room to the left, where he crashed back-first with a sickening crunch. Sableye slid heavily down the wall and landed between two close-forming stalagmites. His arms were draped across the stalagmites limply, like a boxer just out of a ring. Sableye, who was on the verge of fainting, slowly tilted his head up, for he was now unable to move. Pain seared across his back like a Fire Blast, especially underneath the dim jewels that grew there. A small line of blood began to trickle from his mouth down his smooth violet skin. His eyesight was hazy, but his eyes automatically watched Haunter returning his attention back to the humans.

Ash was careening as fast as he could go between the stalagmites. Misty was clutching his left arm as tight as she could, trying her best to help them glide towards the exit, but she wasn't helping much. She was too stunned by the swift changes that had occurred in the few hours that they had been awake. First she had woken up with her thoughts completely surrounding her ardor for Ash and now they were skating, truly 'for their lives', away from a psychopathic Gas Pokémon.

Ash had always believed one fact that Professor Oak had always told him: no Pokémon is evil. Despite their endless run-ins with Team Rocket, Ash knew in his heart that Meowth only acted badly, but wasn't bad himself. Meeting the legendary Pokémon Mewtwo had taught Ash that Pokémon could feel great hatred and instinctively act upon it, but even Mewtwo wasn't immoral, just terribly misunderstood. This situation, however, topped anything Ash had ever seen. His belief in the hidden good in all Pokémon was beginning to wither before his eyes. This Haunter, if any one Pokémon was, was evil. There had to be something in his past that turned him into such a vicious creature, and Ash couldn't help thinking that it had something to do with the scar running across his eye. The Ghost- Type's clear intention was to harm him and Misty; to what extent he didn't know.

That was one thing Ash was unwavering about: he wouldn't let Haunter get Misty, no matter what. Though this situation was considerably more dangerous than the ice slide filled with stalagmites, Ash had the same thought. _No matter what._ Misty's appreciation of him saving her didn't leave his thoughts. _"Thank you, Ash, for saving me."_ He didn't stop to question why this thought was so prominent in his mind. He couldn't stop, period.

Then, from behind them, came a giant SNAP, followed seconds later by a giant ice-shattering CRASH. Ash and Misty looked over their shoulders long enough to catch a glimpse of Haunter's scheme to stop them. A second later, the frenzied Haunter sent another Night Shade barreling into the roots of a stalactite high on the ceiling. The stalactite broke off in a split second, dropping point-first into the ground, shattering the ice and sending the remains of the stalactite halfway into the black water underneath. Ash and Misty tried their hardest to skate faster as stalactites began dropping left and right around them, shards of ice and stalactite flying treacherously everywhere. It was then for the first time that the Haunter's true intention flashed unwillingly through Ash's brain. _He's trying to kill us._

Ash and Misty were getting very close to the exit. They were only a few yards away when Ash glanced back and saw for the first time their new friend, Sableye, draped inertly between the stalagmites. His mind paused for a split second in the middle of a slide, his chivalrous nature again kicking in. Misty, frantic, saw what he was looking at and cried loudly in his ear, "ASH! We can't stop! I know you want to save Sableye, but we can't! He was trying to save us by battling Haunter first, so don't waste his sacrifice!"

Ash knew that she was right, but the moment of indecision was fatally taken advantage of by the savage Haunter. A large stalactite crashed down not feet in front of them, and all in a split second, a large sharp shard of the stalactite spun dangerously through the air. It struck Misty hard on the forehead, ripping a large bloody gash through her cold skin. With a painful gasp, she automatically spun around and fell backwards onto the ice. Her azure eyes, stunned, remained open for a moment, before closing as she went unconscious.

"MISTY!" From Ash's throat came a hoarse, retching cry, so full of anguish that it filled the cavern with pain and drowned out the sound of the stalactites still fallen around them. Sableye, his head swimming on the verge of unconsciousness himself, knew the scream that Ash had just emitted in his shock. He had screamed the same way before, watching his master fall limply to the icy ground, seeing the person that he loved above all else go into a coma.

Haunter laughed, like a huntsman that had finally shot his prey. _One down, one to go! _

The momentum of the slide that they were in continued to carry Ash and the lifeless Misty nearer to the exit. Ash dropped to his knees on her left as they slid. His mind was filled to capacity. _NO! I PROMISED I WOULDN'T LET HER GET HURT! HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN!? WHY? WHY!?_ Slowly, as their sliding energy wound down, Ash crossed his right hand over his lap and slipped it into her limp left hand.

Ash turned his head to look back. He saw Sableye struggling to climb out from in between the stalagmites, the frowning Shuppet hovering a little closer to the Darkness Pokémon to see what he was doing. Then he saw Haunter. Haunter was smiling, the red rims around his black pupils glowing. Ash only saw for a second the Haunter charging an attack. Then, Ash spun around and fell down unresponsively to the ice next to Misty, knocked unconscious by the Night Shade attack that had hit him squarely on the chest. The back of his limp hand remained laying on top of Misty's palm. Both were still.

Sableye struggled with the pain coursing through his body like a Tauros stampede. He managed to look up just in time to see Haunter descending upon Ash and Misty. "NO!" He screamed at the Evil One, and tried to crawl across the floor, but collapsed. His silver hexagonal eyes grew wide as he realized that he was, again, about to witness the procedure that had gradually killed his master.

Hovering over their unconscious bodies, Haunter ceremonially placed each of his disembodied hands on each of their heads. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, summoning up whatever great and paranormal capability that Haunters, and only Haunters, possessed. Finding the clairvoyant supremacy stirring in his veins, he directed his eyes to his hands. Such was the rush of dividing power in his hands that it almost made Haunter giddy to feel the feeling again after such a long wait.

His hands twitched eagerly, but if there was one thing positive said about this Haunter, it was that he respected traditions. He had always felt that it was such a privilege to have the ability that was forsaken to his pre-evolution and evolution, Gastly and Gengar, and to all other Pokémon, for it was an impressive one indeed. Therefore, he had always associated a certain formality into his work, when using his 'skill' as he like to call it. He had seen so many others of his kind abuse their abilities, by using them for playing and creating friends when they were lonely, or simply take their ability for granted, by evolving. _After all, _he considered,_ where is the great excitement in having legs and feet if you can levitate anyway? _

However, now had come the time to use his skill again. Sableye trembled as watched Haunter slowly, very slowly, try to take his hands away from Ash and Misty's heads. For a second, it looked as though his hands had gotten stuck to her hair and his hat, but neither of those things were a pale cloudy blue. Slowly, as he raised his hands higher and higher up, the pale blue began to show its form. Eventually, when the cloudy forms had disconnected from Ash and Misty's motionless bodies, Haunter let go of them and left them suspended in the air. The forms from their bodies had taken the shape of Ash and Misty respectively, just as they were lying on the ground, from Ash with his Pokémon League hat on to Misty with her hair down wearing Ash's vest. Even a cut on the cloudy Misty's forehead mirrored the one bubbled with blood on her true skin. The forms hung limply in the air, their heads down, like puppets with the string that had been attached to their head cut. The eyes remained closed.

Haunter looked upon it, and smiled, and found it good.

Leaving the shadowy forms behind, Haunter turned his attention back to Sableye, who was shaking in his effort to stand, and glided towards him. When Sableye managed to stand up erect, he felt a hand around his throat, jerking him upwards. Gasping and choking, Sableye found himself face to face with the Haunter. Sableye desperately clasped his paws around the fingers holding him, and tried to pry them loose, but to no avail.

"IF YOU TRULY WERE ONTO MY GAME, TELL ME WHAT IT IS!" Haunter screeched commandingly in his ears. The suave tone was gone completely. Haunter shook Sableye a bit. "I TOLD YOU MY PLANS, SO RETELL THEM BACK TO ME, NOW! I NEED TO KNOW THAT YOU KNOW THEM!"

Sableye could only comply as the claws tightened. "You're going to kill everyone!" he cried back wretchedly, "After you kill all living things in this cavern, except for Ghosts, then you'll leave and kill all people and Pokémon, one by one, until there is no one left living! You kill by separating their souls from their bodies! They become ghosts, like you, and after awhile, they're dead forever! It's MURDER!"

"I prefer to call it 'homicide with valid basis'," Haunter grinned, his debonair mood returning. He let Sableye drop to the ice with a thump. "I was just wondering if you had remembered or not. OH! By the way, Sableye, I forgot to mention, I wrote a poem about this, MY cavern, like the ones you and your dead master used to do. Would you like to hear?" Haunter continued in a singsong chant.

"There's no better guests or hosts,

Than separated kids and Ghosts!"

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

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…I love cliffhangers, so please don't beat me up too much, okay? Anyway, obviously the "Who's That Pokémon?" was Sableye, so congrats to Alex Warlorn, The girl who flamed, Tyrano, ChoasSora99, Chibimatchmaker, Ri2, and soraoathkeeper. By the way, Vigoroth and Sneasel weren't bad guesses either! This time, I'm wondering if you could tell me what your favorite part in this story has been, okay? I need to know what you all like the best! Thanks!

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 6's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter. :)


	7. What Happens To Our Souls?

Hello. The new chapter has arrived, and I hope no one has yet died from suspense. After all, we already have too many people dieing here anyway. Anyway, congratulations to Ash Ketchum,Pokémon Master, J.C. the Wabbit, ze cookie, The girl who flamed, Halfling Rogue, Rosemary the Rubix Cube, and of course Sparklewolf, who all got correctly Chapter 6's title line, "...it takes a certain kind of skill...", which is from _2 B A Master_ from the 2 B A Master CD. Now, without further ado, the story continues...

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**CHAPTER 7: ...What Happens To Our Souls?...**

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Ash crinkled his eyebrows over his closed eyes in frustration, as his perplexing thoughts began to slowly come back into focus in the blackness of his sight. His brain was a twist of reverberating sounds, screams and cackles, and echoing visions of swirled colors, deep violet, silver marble pattern, light lavender with gray, soft orange, and black rimmed in an intense vermilion. He felt the need to know what was going on.

He opened his eyes. Something seemed wrong here. The strange thing about his surroundings, it seemed, was not that he was somehow high up in the air. The strange thing was the place in which he was somehow levitated. The walls were rock, and the floor was ice, and there were broken stalactites busted on the floor, which was not where he was supposed to be. The walls should have been ornately carved and painted plaster, and the floor should have been wooden, and there should have been a broken chandelier busted on the floor. What was going on here?

Thoughts, comparing thoughts, began to roll in by the dozen. _Kanto... Hoenn... Lavender Town... Route 119... Pokémon Tower... the cavern..._ The cavern was where he was supposed to be, he realized, not in some other place. For the moment, he didn't know why he had thought he was supposed to be in Kanto and not Hoenn. _...The cavern... of a million colors... just like Misty said. _That was right too. Misty was with him at the moment, not Pikachu as he had thought at first. He didn't get a chance to look around for Misty, though, for he suddenly found himself consciously staring at the ground far beneath him.

With a gasp, Ash mentally and physically tried to prepare himself for falling down sixteen feet to the ice, but after a moment, it suddenly dawned on him that falling wasn't going to happen. He was in the air, just standing as natural as you please, which made Ash crinkle his eyebrows again, pensively this time.

Suddenly, far below, collapsed with their backs to the ground, he spotted Misty and... himself. Ash twitched in surprise, though he somehow didn't feel extremely shocked to see himself lying unconscious next to Misty. _I mean, that's what it is supposed to be, right? But where is the chandelier that fell on us? Who took it? ...Wait... there isn't a chandelier here, but... I remember... No, that was somewhere else, wasn't it? That was why I thought I was in Kanto, because this happened before, didn't it? I saw myself lying unconscious on the ground in Kanto... Lavender Town... the... the Pokémon Tower. Yes, Pokémon Tower. Wait, but didn't I see myself and Pikachu look kind of dead like this because that Haunter separated our souls from our bodies? Then..._ Slowly, the image of black and vermilion eyes floated into his mind, and Ash suddenly gasped.

_It happened again!_

Ash quickly glanced down at his hands, and saw that his hands and his gloves were not the color that they were supposed to be. They were a pale grayish blue, translucent, giving Ash the impression of thick smoke. He glanced down at his shoes. They were the same color. Suddenly, Ash realized that his body didn't feel so heavy. It was almost as if he had the weight reduction he got underwater, yet he felt much lighter even than that. He felt like a cloud high up in the sky, far away from the world's gravity. He blinked. _Then I'm just a spirit right now,_ he thought, as old half-remembered words, his own words, grew in his mind.

"..._We're down there! What's going on? ...You're saying we're alike now? ...On no! We've been totally separated from our bodies! ...No way! I don't want to be a ghost yet!"_

Ash would always remember Lavender Town, one of the stops in the middle of his Kanto traveling, no matter how many journeys he went on after that and no matter how long ago it had happened. To defeat the gym leader, Sabrina, and her psychic Kadabra from Saffron City, he had tried to catch a Ghost- type Pokémon at Pokémon Tower in Lavender Town, a nearby city. However, when he had gotten there, a Haunter that lived there had actually caught him and Pikachu, instead of the other way around. It had separated their souls from their bodies after an old chandelier had crashed down on top of himself and Pikachu, knocking them out. After a few adventures of flying around in the sky, Haunter and his friends Gastly and Gengar took their ghosts to a room high up in the tower. There were loads of games and toys there, and Ash finally figured out that Haunter had only made them into ghosts because he and his friends were lonely. He eventually convinced the sad Pokémon that he needed to continue his journey, and Haunter sent them back into their bodies, though he came along to Saffron to help Ash get his gym badge. Haunter ended up not being the most reliable Pokémon in the world, but he managed to secure Ash his fourth badge ever, in his own strange way.

Lavender Town's Haunter had separated Ash's spirit from his body because he had wanted a playmate. Somehow, this cavern's Haunter didn't seem like the gentle type of the other, so that could hardly be his reason. Ash glanced behind himself towards the back wall. The smiling Shuppets, the serious Shuppet, Sableye, and Haunter were gone.

All of a sudden, there was a surprised shriek in his ear and a moment later, Ash found a pair of arms wrapped tightly around his neck. He twitched nervously, glancing to his left, and saw the pale blue ghost of Misty hanging onto him for dear life. "WHAT HAPPENED?" She was hysterical in fright. "WHY ARE WE UP HERE? WHY ARE WE ALL... ALL... GHOST-LIKE?" Suddenly, Ash saw her eyes shift to the ice and for the first time, she must have noticed their bodies lying motionless on the ground. She hugged his neck tighter. "WE'RE DOWN THERE! WHAT'S GOING ON?"

"We've... we've been separated from our bodies, for some reason," Ash muttered. Haunter, he knew now, had definitely been trying to kill them, so why had he only separated their souls from their bodies and hadn't done... more? Ash was sure that he and Misty weren't dead, for the other Haunter had sent himself and Pikachu back to their bodies when they asked, but why hadn't the evil Pokémon just gone ahead and killed them with stalactites or something? ...And why on Earth did the Haunter want them to be dead? What had they done to him? What had someone done to him to make him the vicious Pokémon he was? Did he want to kill just anything that was alive? Why?

"WHAT!" Misty's eyes grew wide, staring at him, "HOW?"

"Haunter did it, because," Ash hesitated, but only slightly, "I think he's trying to kill us. ...But we're not dead, so don't worry about that."

Misty's mouth hung open in shock. She glanced down at their bodies on the floor, which actually looked surprisingly dead. "...Kill us? Why on Earth would a Pokémon want to... to kill someone? What is wrong with that Haunter, Ash?"

Her arms were still around his neck, as if either in fear of falling as they floated above the icy floor, or simply in fear itself. Ash instinctively put his left arm around her without him noticing himself. She was shivering, though from nerves and not cold. Ash had noticed a moment ago that he really could feel no temperature, and anything that would normally be hurting from the Haunter's attack on his body right now, was not in pain on his spirit form. He couldn't even feel his starving stomach rage at him anymore. "I... I really don't know why, Misty. It's so, just... wrong."

Misty began to breathe in heavily, but this did her no good, as her spirit didn't use air. After a moment or two, she mumbled, almost as if she was embarrassed, "... I... I... I'm kind of... of scared, Ash."

Ash crinkled his eyebrows once more, this time in distress. Misty hated to admit things that made her look weak, so she was obviously very scared of their situation, or very trusting that Ash wouldn't laugh at her. Ash, trying to figure out what to do, realized that his left arm was around her shoulders, so he cautiously rubbed her back in a reassuring way. She wouldn't look him in the eye, but he felt her arms relax, though not loosen their hold on his neck. Gently, Ash asked, "What exactly are you afraid of, Mist?"

She didn't answer for a moment, but simply stared down at their bodies. Then, "Of... of falling, and... that's all." _So that really is what she was afraid of, _Ash thought, though for some unknown reason that he simply couldn't understand, he was saddened that fear was her only motivation for holding onto him.

"Don't worry about that," Ash tried to assure her, "You won't fall. I mean, I haven't fallen, so you won't either. ...It's kind of fun to glide around. You can do that, you know. It's just like swimming underwater, except better." Misty suddenly switched from fear to annoyance, giving Ash her famous 'don't-you-dare-dis-water-again-or-I-will-hurt-you-very-badly' look. "I mean, nothing can beat swimming, so this takes second place, but..." Ash trailed off sheepishly. Misty's eyes softened laughingly, and the corners of her mouth twitched upwards.

"Well, if you say so!" Misty slowly released him from her intense grip and hung in the air by herself. After a moment, she straightened herself up and smiled a little bit, proud to have overcome her small fear. Then, in a serious tone, she turned to Ash, looking him in the eye, and asked, "Do you think we're ghosts?"

"Ghosts, spirits, souls... whatever you want to call it," Ash mumbled, but added once more, "but we're not dead. Just separated from our bodies."

Misty became thoughtful. "I like the word 'souls'. 'Spirits' and 'ghosts' are kind of scary sounding, but 'soul' is a nice word."

"Yeah," Ash agreed, "and ghosts ARE scary, huh?"

She snorted in laughter, but nodded sadly. Then, seriously again, she asked, "If we're separated from our bodies, can we just go down there and get back in our bodies?"

Ash gave their motionless forms on the floor another look. He wasn't sure that it worked that way, just being able to go back in, but anything was worth a try. "I don't know, Misty, but we can have a go at it." Ash, remembering how he had moved when he was a spirit in Lavender Town, glided down towards their bodies on the icy floor. Misty was unsure of what to do, and in desperation, actually did the same thing Ash had done and glided down beside him.

Both of their bodies were ghastly pale, Ash's face very flushed and all of Misty's skin colorless. For both of them, it was a strange sensation to see themselves, for all mirrors lie, no matter what. Misty's mind became a bit joyful, seeing Ash's right hand laying on top of her left palm. In her and Ash's case, she found their hands' position rather romantic. _Two desperate lovers, unable to continue onwards on the unforgiving journey of their lives, bound together for eternity... _She shook her silly, dreaming sentence thoughts away, as they would probably only make her do something drastic, and Misty turned her attention back to Ash. Ash was slowly reaching his hand out to touch his own body. He got his ghostly fingers about an inch away from his body's chest, then stopped. He pulled his hand back and tried again, but only got an inch away before stopping again. He blinked.

"Well?" Misty asked, "Aren't you going to-"

"I can't," Ash said, then continued at Misty's confusion, "I mean, there's like a force field around my body or something. I can't touch myself, so I can't get back in."

Misty was visibly disappointed. "Oh. Well, I guess the only way we can is to get Haunter to send us back, huh? Good luck to us with that," she muttered sarcastically.

"We'll find a way."

"Yeah, I know." Suddenly, Ash saw her glance down at her body on the ice. "Aw, man! Will you look at that? I'm bleeding." She touched the cut on her soul's forehead that matched the one bubbled with blood on her body. It felt as though her cut was damp on her forehead, though she couldn't feel the actual feeling of wetness.

"Gosh!" Ash glided past Misty, and kneeled down gently on the ice on Misty's body's right side. "Whenever we do get back in our bodies, you're head will be hurting like Psyduck if you loose much more blood." Unthinkingly, he reached his fingers out towards her forehead and touched her cut gently. Both Ash and Misty jumped in shock that Ash was able to make contact with Misty's body and not his own. Ash glanced at his ghostly left hand fingers and saw, in surprise, a thin layer of blood on his fingertips, pale blue like the rest of himself. Misty, who was watching Ash's soul from across both of their bodies, glanced down at Ash's body's limp left hand and saw fresh, red blood hanging from his fingertips. She was stunned. Ash hadn't noticed what Misty had, and he rubbed his fingers together, feeling the strange texture of ghostly blood. Misty saw what Ash did and glanced down at his left hand again. His hand hadn't twitched or moved in the slightest, but the red blood was now smeared across his fingertips.

Now that the two parts of themselves were separated, whatever happened to their bodies automatically corresponded with their souls, and whatever happened to their souls automatically corresponded with their bodies, Misty figured. It was strange, and somewhat frightening.

Misty glanced up as Ash reasoned, "Maybe I can stop your cut from bleeding any more." He glanced around, unsure of what to do or use to help her body. Suddenly, she saw his eyes widen. He gave her a nervous glance out of the corner of his eyes, and slowly, took his Pokémon League hat off of his head. For a moment, Misty thought he was going to press his hat to her body's forehead, until he reached inside of his hat and pulled out one of the most secret items he had ever owned. Misty froze.

Her handkerchief.

It was the handkerchief that she had given Ash the day that she had been forced to leave him for the first time since they met. She had given it to him discretely, almost without him knowing, but was sure that he wouldn't keep it. Ash wasn't good with keeping small items like that (after all, it had been a terror trying to keep Quagsire and other things from stealing the GS Ball when he had it). She had wanted, no matter what, to be remembered. She had never wanted to be forgotten. Obviously, she hadn't been.

He had always kept her handkerchief with him. After he had come to Hoenn, Pikachu had gotten sick, and Ash was positive that more bad luck was sure to follow. While waiting for Professor Birch to come pick them up at the docks, he had taken her gift out of his backpack and stuck it inside of the new hat that he wore. It had been a small bit comforting to know that a part of Misty was with him, even if she wasn't. Since then, he had kept her handkerchief with him whatever happened and wherever he went. Brock and Pikachu had seen it before, but they didn't know that Ash had kept it. May and Max hadn't seen it all. It was a... personal thing to Ash, that he didn't want on display to everyone.

Misty watched him in silence. With great ceremony, he folded in half the handkerchief, pale blue like everything that had become a part of his soul with him, and then folded it in half again. Then, Ash tenderly placed the pale square of cloth on the cut and firmly but gently held it down with the palm of his hand. He kept his eyes on his work, and Misty kept her eyes on him. They didn't speak, or make any noise. After a minute or so, he lifted the handkerchief up to check on the stoppage of blood. The cut had clotted sufficiently to not bubble up any more, so Ash placed the ghostly cloth back down and blotted at a crimson stain on her body's wan forehead. He then swiped away any remaining blood and checked the cut once more. It had stopped completely, and simply remained a red line drawn across her brow.

Ash looked at the handkerchief and saw that there was a giant smudge and two smaller ones stained on it. He didn't really care. It was her handkerchief and her blood, so it was okay. In the same slow movements he had been using, he returned the folded handkerchief to the inside of his ghost hat and put it back on his head. Misty touched her own soul forehead and found, not so surprisingly, that the damp-like feeling was gone.

For an unknown reason, Ash found it hard to look back up at her watching spirit again, but he felt that such a thing was required of him after the small act of service. They stared expressionlessly at each other from across their unconscious bodies. Then Misty smiled softly, her eyes narrowing contentedly, and whispered, "Thanks." He nodded, for he didn't feel that it would be prudent to ask which she was thanking him for: stopping her body from bleeding to death, or keeping her handkerchief. Maybe both.

A small clicking sound came from behind Misty and they quickly looked around, half-fearing and half-hoping that it was Haunter. From behind one of the few stalagmites that had remained intact in the ice, a violet paw appeared, followed by a ragged Sableye. He crawled towards them on all fours, low to the ground, his silver eyes dull and downcast. They saw a line of dried blood had formed from his mouth to his chin. His twitching movements suggested that the most terrible aches and pains were affecting him.

"Sableye!" Ash cried out, standing up quickly and gliding in the air towards the frail Pokémon. Misty followed him immediately. Sableye glanced up at Ash's voice. He groaned softly and suddenly, fell over onto his right side with a hard thump. Ash kneeled down in front of the collapsed Pokémon and cautiously petted his smooth violet head. Misty, afraid that the injured Dark- and Ghost- type might die on them, was tentative to sit down to Sableye's left, but she did. The Pokémon managed a weak whine.

"Sableye, can you see and hear us?" Ash asked. Sableye, looking up at him, nodded. Ash wasn't too surprised. The other Ghost- types in Lavender Town, besides the Haunter, had been able to see and hear him and Pikachu, also. He figured it was a ghost thing, being able to see and hear other ghosts.

Misty seemed in the verge of tears. "Sableye," she sniffed, "Are you going to be okay?"

Sableye, through his pain-dimmed eyesight, saw how distressed the ghost girl was over his condition, so he tried a slight smile to comfort her. "Sable," he murmured. Forcing his mind to take his body back under control, he lifted his head up and looked past Ash and Misty's souls at their bodies on the floor. His long slender arm shaking, he pointed at the motionless forms, then at himself and back again.

"Do you want us to take you over there, Sableye?" Ash asked quickly. Sableye let out a small squeak, too high pitched to be normal, which they took to mean a 'yes'. Ash, nodding to Misty to copy him, slipped his pale blue arm under Sableye's right arm, and Misty cautiously slipped her own arm under the Pokémon's left. They both floated up a few feet off the floor (Misty was getting the hang of the whole 'floating' business), and flew Sableye smoothly over to where their bodies lie. They set him down gently on the ice. He slowly sat up, left paw claws sinking into a stalagmite to keep him steady. Gasping as the vertebras in his backbone scraped together, Sableye wondered how long it was going to be this time before he had completely healed. Haunter had been right. It had taken him two weeks to be able to move naturally again after the last time they had battled.

"Sableye," Ash inquired inferiorly, "I know that you're really hurting from your battle with Haunter, but do you think it's possible that you could send us back to our bodies? I mean, you're a Ghost- type, so can you? If you do, we can get out of this cavern, and when we get back on the ground, we can get our backpacks from our friends and bring you some Potions and things to heal you." He saw Sableye give a weak grin at the medicine that he was offering him. He obviously wished that Ash and Misty had the medicine now.

However, Sableye slowly shook his head. "You can't send us back? You're not able to?" Sableye continued to give his negative response, but the wrinkles in his forehead grew deeper as he felt more useless. "... Haunter could send us back though, if he wanted to, couldn't he?" Looking up at the darkest hole in the back wall, then at the spirit Ash, Sableye nodded. "He won't though." Nod. "...He wants to kill us, right?" Nod. "We're not completely dead though." Nod. "Does he... does Haunter want to kill... a lot of people... besides us?" ...Nod. "He does? And... and Pokémon, too?" Nod. "Well, I mean, he obviously can't kill everyone in the world this way, can he?" Sableye gave him a look that read, 'if he possibly could, he would'. Ash began to feel sick. What on earth was wrong with the Gaseous Pokémon?

"What do we do now?" Misty interjected into Ash's questioning for information. Sableye was thoughtful. What could they do now? He knew that they hadn't been out of their bodies long, but they couldn't waste even a second more, for they didn't have a long time to begin with. He figured they'd been out five minutes, for he had watched their souls wake up from behind a stalagmite, just as Haunter was going into his hole. They had only been unconscious for less than a minute, but they probably thought it was longer. _They need more information about... about everything that's... indispensable to know. _Suddenly, Sableye pointed up at the ceiling.

"Huh?" Ash frowned. "You want us to go to the ceiling?" Sableye shook his head, slowly to avoid a rising headache, and jabbed his finger towards the top of the cavern again.

"Farther up than the ceiling?" Misty asked. Sableye carefully nodded, then held up two claws. "Two... two..." Misty muttered, trying to decipher his message. "Two... second..." Sableye's eyes lit up the smallest bit. "Second? Second... second what?"

Sableye pointed up at the ceiling once more. Ash thought hard, then it dawned on him. "The second cavern?"

"Sable!" Sableye hoarsely cried.

"We need to go to the second cavern? But why? ...Wait a second," Ash blinked, "The only thing that we really saw was writing on the wall, but it was too high up for us to read." Sableye was nodding as vigorously as he could at the moment. "You... you want us to read the writing?" He nodded again.

"Ash," Misty said, "We'd be able to see it now, because we can float up to it."

"You're right, Misty," Ash agreed, then turned back to Sableye, "We'll go read the writing, okay?" Sableye made a hasty shoo-ing motion with his paw again. "And we'll go fast, too. Be careful, Sableye. We'll come back as soon as we can." Sableye nodded.

Misty glided down to the Darkness Pokémon and petted his head tenderly. "Take care of yourself, okay?" Sableye smiled and nodded slightly. The girl was sweet and Sableye thought the boy lucky to have someone like her with him. He remembered how his own master had wanted a certain girl to travel with him, but wasn't able to have her companionship, though his master had hinted that he liked the girl a little more than a friend. Sableye vaguely wondered if it was the same for these two as it was for his master and his master's friend. They seemed awful close and caring.

"We'll be back, Sableye," Ash called, as he glided towards the exit, Misty following in his wake. Then, they were gone down the passage, back the way they had come, minus one important thing: their bodies. Sableye glanced over at the rapidly chilling bodies he was guarding. Both the boy and the girl (Ash and Misty, right?) now had almost bleached looking skin. Unfortunately, Sableye knew that the cold wasn't the only thing that was making them whiter. He shivered... in apprehension.

Out of the corner of his hexagonal eyes, Sableye spotted a shape. He looked quickly. It was the Shuppet. It had glided a bit towards him from wherever it had hidden after Haunter left, still frowning at him, its face totally impossible to read. _Is it going to say something? Or attack? Or... is it guarding the children... and me? _The Shuppet continued its stare unblinkingly, even as Sableye quickly glanced warily back at the hole in the wall.

He had thought that he had heard laughter.

Ash and Misty quickly found that flying around, though it was bound to have inconveniences that they hadn't yet discovered, was a far easier way to travel around the caverns than to slide in the ice or struggle through the snow. They flew right over top of the ice slide, seeing how extremely steep it looked from the air, and through the ice floored caves. They began to pass things in a few minutes that had probably taken them half an hour, or maybe a whole hour, to get to. The lighting was normal now. Suddenly, they were back in their favorite cavern, the one with the crystalfall. From their new viewpoint, ten feet up in the air, Ash and Misty could fully appreciate the beauty of its shingled design and explosion of color. They both hesitated for a moment, not really wanting to leave the new panorama.

"We have to keep going," Misty murmured softly, slowly flying towards the next grotto area. Ash, tearing his eyes away, followed. The next cavern's floor turned back into snow and finally, they were back in the third, round cavern. Ahead of them was the high cliff, and the long slide to their right. They glanced down at the floor and saw that the footprints that they had left were still visible in the snow.

Ash took the lead, soaring high up towards the top of the cavern. Misty followed at a slower speed. She had been thinking hard ever since they had left Sableye behind. Something wasn't right, but she wasn't sure what it could be. Misty kept thinking back to the things Ash had told her when she had woken up to frighteningly find that she was near the cavern ceiling. Something, for some reason, didn't seem to add up. He seemed to... know more than she did...

"Ash." Ash paused in mid-flight and turned in the air to face Misty. Her short, ghostly blue hair framed her puzzled face as she stared at him.

"What is it, Mist?" Ash was in the midst of an excitement rush. These caverns were turning out to be quite the adventure, no matter how cold or scary, and adventure always stirred up his blood.

She only hesitated a second. "How did you know? I mean, how did you know that it was Haunter that separated us from our bodies? Sableye agreed with you, so how did you already know? And how did you know how to move as a ghost? I had no idea how to glide around until I copied what you did." Ash knew that if he had been in his body, his cheeks would have been bright red. "I mean, it's almost like you've been a ghost before."

Ash sucked in a breath that wasn't necessary. Misty noticed. "I don't know what you're talking about," he replied, his voice slightly higher than normal. He had never told Misty and Brock what had happened to him and Pikachu, and for all they knew, the two had just been unconscious the whole time.

Misty's eyes immediately narrowed fiercely. "You're lying." When Ash started to protest, she shook her finger at him in reprisal. "Don't give me that, Ash Ketchum! You've been a ghost before, haven't you!" She began to rant, "It was while I was gone, wasn't it! I knew it! Everything happens when I'm not looking! Everything! I-"

"No." Misty stopped yelling at him. He was looking away in embarrassment. "Yeah, Pikachu and I were ghosts once for a little bit, but it wasn't when you were gone."

Misty's eyebrows furrowed. "When was it then?" She couldn't think of a time when Ash could have been a ghost and she and Brock or Tracey wouldn't have known.

Ash seemed a bit surprised that she hadn't guessed. "...Lavender Town, of course."

_Lavender Town..._ Misty thought, _...Of course! When we were at that Pokémon Tower in Lavender Town, Ash and Pikachu went in by themselves for a while when Brock and I waited outside. When we finally went inside, they were unconscious under that broken chandelier, and it took them a long time to wake up, even after we dragged them out from under that big old brass chandelier. That's when they must have been ghosts!_

Suddenly, Misty recalled a particularly bizarre event, that still to the current day she had never figured out, that had occurred while she and Brock had been waiting outside for Ash and Pikachu. While she was standing around, something invisible had grabbed her around the waist and lifted her high up into the air. She had screamed, sure that it was one of the freaky ghosts that haunted the tower out to get her. Then, the invisible hands had let go and grabbed her under her arms, letting her dangle and giving Brock a chance to catch her when it finally let go. She had just about squished Brock to pieces when she knocked him over, but she didn't even apologize. She was too worried that another one of the ghosts had gotten Ash, so she ran towards the tower in a rush, only to find her worst fears confirmed with the boy and his Pokémon unconscious on the floor inside.

Ash waited tensely for Misty to come to some sort of conclusion from the apparent memory she was recalling. All of a sudden, her eyes became dangerous slits. "It was you, wasn't it! It was you who picked me up!" she yelled at him. This was true. "You were the one who complete scared me out of my wits! I can't believe you! And you never told me or Brock this whole time! I oughta..." She made a livid lunge at him. With a slight cry, Ash flew out of her grasp and glided as fast as he could towards the hole in the ceiling of the cavern that led to their destination, the second cavern. He could sense that Misty was gaining on him, but for some reason, she hadn't raged at him in as tough a manner as he was used to from her. When she had yelled at him, she had seemed awful... playful.

Misty was slightly regretful that Ash hadn't glanced back her as she chased him towards the stalactites. He would have seen that she was smiling, for she had remembered something that made her stomach burn inside happily. She remembered a voice whispering in her ear right before the 'ghost' had picked her up. Now she was excited about who had said it and the words that were said, for she remembered the delight that had been easily detectable in the voice.

"_So Misty, you're really worried about me!"_

During the few seconds that it took to fall through the tunnel, Jesse was worried about landing on something hard when the hole ran out of tunnel, though she didn't have to be. For one thing, when she sat up after hitting the floor, she found that she had landed in a pile of soft, fluffy snow. For another, she had also landed on James, who was laying face down spread-Pidgey in the snow bank.

Jesse blinked, then smiled gratefully. To James, she said sweetly, "Thanks for breaking my fall." She heard a muffled groan coming from inside the flurries and she quickly stood up, grabbing James under his left arm and heaving him out of the snow. James' head and shoulders were slumped a considerable amount, and he held his right hand to his forehead tightly. Jesse held his left arm securely to keep her dazed partner from falling over as she brushed snowflakes out of his straight blue hair. He groaned again. "Are you okay, James?"

Flinching in pain, James mumbled, "My head's not. I must have hit it on something when we landed," and he added as an afterthought, "...it hurts."

"Well," Jesse said brightly, "be thankful that I wasn't hurt."

James narrowed his emerald eyes, and under his breath, he muttered sarcastically, "Yes, I'm very thankful." Luckily, Jesse didn't hear him, for she was giving their environment a second glance and was awestruck. James, rubbing his throbbing forehead, glanced at their surroundings and was equally impressed.

They were in a cave, a giant underground cavern. It was thirty feet across, and like a hallway, it stretched out a long way before and behind them. The walls were jagged marble-patterned stone, pale gray and white, almost silver, and the settled snow rolled up against the walls in waves. The top of the cavern was rounded like a cathedral, and the long tapering forms of dripping stalactites hung down threateningly. Right above the two, stalactites framed a dark round opening. As if it wanted to explain that it was the hole that Jesse and James had fallen through, a few particles of dust wafted down through the air from the opening.

Suddenly, Jesse gasped in delight and clasped her hands together gleefully. "Oh, James! It's so... just... MAGNIFICENT in here, isn't it!" She was glancing around happily, her eyes wide and joyful, gazing at all of the flurries. "Look at all of the snow, James! SNOW! Isn't it so beautiful and fluffy and white! Oh, I just LOVE the snow, James!" She grasped a handful of snow and went skipping around and around in circles, letting flakes fall from her hand. James stayed where he was, letting the pain in his head subside and adjusting the strap of the backpack he was wearing. He hoped that Jesse hadn't swashed all of the items inside the pack when she had landed on him, but at the moment, he didn't mind. He knew how much Jesse cherished snow, which brought her memories of her mother, and he loved watching her whenever she got excited about the snow. He loved-

WHUMP! James was almost knocked down as a perfectly-round and perfectly-aimed snowball hit him square in the chest. Jesse laughed merrily, calling, "Come on, James! It's snow! SNOW! It's been perfectly forever since we saw snow! Isn't it funny? It's summer up there, but winter down here!" James blinked, then grinned wickedly at her. Immediately, he bent down and grabbed a handful of snow. It was a pointless little race to see who would have their next weapon first. Jesse was soon almost done compacting a new missile, but James was about to throw his. Jesse looked up at him, grinning, but slowly the smile faded away into a slightly fearful look. James realized that she was looking over his shoulder, but he was certain that she was faking it to get the advantage. He didn't consider that something was really wrong until her snowball fell limply out of her hands, the rest of her perfectly still. James froze as he began to sense a presence behind him. James turned gradually around and Jesse slowly tiptoed to his side.

It was Sneasel.

Sneasel looked happy.

Well, not so much 'happy' as 'grinning-broadly-but-nastily-because-it-was-planning-something-most-unpleasant'.

Jesse and James did not look happy. They weren't happy. They were intimidated, shocked, and freaked out. Neither one had heard the Ice- and Dark- type Pokémon sneak up on them. As they did very often, both wondered the same thing at the same time. _How did a Sneasel get here?_

"Hello Kitty," Jesse murmured cautiously.

The Sneasel was watching them with arms crossed. Suddenly, it sprang into action. With a great battle cry, it swung its right paw at them, both sharp claws extended portentously. Jesse and James cried out in fright and James latched himself onto Jesse's back. After the attack failed to strike, all three stood still. The Sneasel was just considering waving them away and laughing hysterically at their fright, when suddenly, the partners did what Team Rocket did best.

They ran screaming in the opposite direction.

Just as Jesse and James' instincts had sprung into action, so did Sneasel's, and Sneasel's instincts yelled, 'CHASE'! Sneasel took off after them immediately as the two humans struggled to run through the thick snow drifts. They ran and ran and ran. As they ran (screaming at the same time), James looked over his shoulder at the quickly approaching Pokémon, then up at the hole in the ceiling from whence they had come. The further they dashed from the Sneasel, the further away from hole they were going. James knew that if they could shake off the pursuing Sneasel, or go back the other way past it, they could get out of this cavern with the Escape Ropes in his backpack, but the Sneasel seemed to be everywhere behind them at once.

Jesse and James were practiced runners, which gave them an advantage, but the Sneasel was in its element... literally. The snow piles slowed the fleeing people tremendously, but helped the Sneasel, who could run almost on top of the snow. It would get very close to them, give a swipe at them, and give them a few seconds head start again. Sneasel was grinning happily now. Its game was fun.

The hole in the ceiling soon disappeared from sight as they continued running and running and running. Jesse felt like she had been running for at least ten minutes when she felt herself slowing down. James was slowing down, too.

"WE'RE GOING TO DIE! WE'RE GOING TO DIE!" James began to shriek hysterically. He tripped on some unseen rock buried deep in the snow and almost fell right down, but Jesse grabbed his left hand with her right in the nick of time and pulled him out of it. They continued their pace. Sneasel yowled out merrily behind them.

"Don't be so pessimistic, James!" Jesse condemned James' panic, though she felt the same way herself, "We'll get out of this somehow! ...Maybe we can offer it a job at Team Rocket, so it can hurt as many Twerps as it wants, just not us!"

"We already tried asking a Sneasel that before, Jess!" James answered, holding onto her hand tighter, "And it didn't work!"

"Oh." Jesse remembered. "Right."

Sneasel began to slow its pace as it saw its targets slowing down. It wished they would hurry up again. The Sneasel liked its game of Tag, but it wasn't very fun unless the competition was decently competitive. Jesse and James didn't notice the Sneasel slowing. They kept running down the silver-walled passage, even though they were dead tired and lost already. Unknown to them, Sneasel abruptly stopped. It stood still for a moment, watching them run off, then began to laugh. It doubled over in laughter and almost fell down. Still chuckling, it shook its head and waved the retreating pair away with its still-extended claws, then cantered off down the snowy path, the way Jesse and James had come. It was bored, and tired. It wanted a nice long nap. Besides, it didn't want to get near the hole that was in the floor...

...that Jesse and James abruptly found as they fell straight into it. They fell, but only for a few seconds before they hit snow. The two Team Rocket members landed in a jumbled heap. They hadn't even seen the hole until they plummeted down through it. After a second in which the shock of the fall went away, Jesse and James quickly untangled themselves from each other and struggled up to continue running. James fell down again, so Jesse wearily hauled him up, saying, "Come on, James! We have to keep going! That Sneasel will jump through the hole any second now and rip us to shreds!"

"Just leave me here to die!" James moaned pathetically. Jesse rolled her sapphire eyes. He was being his dramatic-theatre-self again.

"COME ON! I will NOT leave you here to die! Let's go!" She dragged him back up onto his feet from where he had slumped over again. Reluctantly, he moved his feet, and they took off down the snowy hallway. James, exhausted and now slightly paranoid, thought he saw the Sneasel over his shoulder. He had actually seen snow that he had kicked up himself, but he didn't realize it, and began screaming hysterically again.

The thought of battling Sneasel with their Pokémon had never once entered either of their minds.

_I wish I could battle, _Max kept thinking. Even as the search party collapsed, exhausted, on the ground after the long morning of searching, his brain continued to bug him with questions that were inappropriate to the somber situation they were in. Nonetheless, the thought of Pokémon battling continued to plague Max's mind, egged on by the four Pokéballs on the belt he was wearing, and the two Pokémon in his arms and on his shoulder. _A whole team, _Max thought, sitting on the grass beside his sister. However, the more Max thought, the more he began to feel that his brain wasn't trying to tell him that it wanted to battle, but it was telling him something that had to do with the Pokémon. For the life of him, he couldn't figure out what.

Max watched Brock sit down wearily on the ground across from him, then he glanced at his sister. He couldn't believe that she was staring dreamily into space again. They were supposed to be watching for clues as to where Ash and Misty could have disappeared to, as they had completely given up on calling for them. "MAY!" Max yelled sharply in her right ear, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

May immediately whipped her head around to face him, and yelled right back, "WHAT DO YOU THINK? I'M THINKING, FOR HO-OH'S SAKE! DON'T YOU EVER THINK?" The complete irony of the outburst was somehow lost.

Brock was grinning slightly to himself, and Max felt that Brock probably knew something that he didn't about May's dreaming. May promptly went back to staring at nothing, her eyes half-closed and a smile just visible on her face. Max rolled his eyes. His sister was very weird, obviously, but he had known that for ages. She was quite concerned about Ash and Misty, just like the rest of them, but when no one was saying what they should be doing or she didn't have anything to say about it, then she didn't really think about it either.

Poochyena was rolling in the grass a little ways away from the trainers, and Pikachu was standing nearby, watching somewhat quizzically and waiting for the people to give the word that they were continuing on. Though he was trying to look optimistic, there was something very forlorn and desperate about Pikachu's face. He was clearly beyond his worry limit about his master and his friend, and was now ready to just cry in failure.

"Hey, Pikachu," Brock called softly. Pikachu glanced over at him and meandered soberly over to him on all-fours. Brock petted the electric Pokémon's droopy ears and muttered, "It's okay, Pikachu. Don't be so depressed. We'll find them... eventually." Pikachu lied down on the ground, his round black eyes still threatening to produce tears. Brock petted his brown-striped back a bit, which was a bit calming for both of them.

"'Eventually' is right, Brock," Max muttered, "I'm simply clueless about what could have happened to them. It's like they've vanished off the face of the Earth! I mean, I'm sure they're somewhere in these woods here, but... I don't know. ...Hey, Brock, what time is it?"

Brock pulled Max's PokéNav out of his pocket and switched it on. They had been wandering somewhat aimlessly for a while, so he had turned it off a bit ago. Max saw Brock's eyebrows rise in surprise. "I didn't know it was this late." Brock promptly turned the PokéNav around for Max to read the screen. 12:34 PM.

Max was surprised, too. "Wow, it is pretty late; the morning's completely gone. I've thought that time was going slowly when we were searching, so I figured that it would still be early, but I guess it wasn't that slow! So how long have we been looking, Brock?"

It took Brock a second or two to figure it out in his head. "Well, we were searching for about three hours last night. We left the old camp at eight o'clock this morning, and it's about twelve thirty now, so that's... let me think... about four and a half hours today. Together, we've been searching for them about-"

"-seven and a half hours," Max completed. They sat in stunned silence for a while. Pikachu sighed. Togepi, who had been sitting in May's lap pulling grass out of the ground, trilled, though the noise seemed a little sad for once. May continued to stare into space, and though she probably hadn't heard them, her forehead wrinkled unhappily, so at least she had the right emotion if not the right thought. Poochyena crawled morosely over to Max and nudged his hand, wanting to be petted, which Max did absentmindedly.

After a long pause, Brock mumbled, "Well, it's past lunch time, so why don't we get something to eat while we take this break?"

"Rice balls?" Max asked. At this, Pikachu sighed heavily again, got up, and bounded towards some berry trees a few yards away, intending to pick some to eat along with the food infamous as leftovers. Max chuckled at Brock's dejected face. "He loves your food, Brock, but I think Pikachu just doesn't like repeated meals."

"Then why don't I cook something, because I made everyone eat the leftover rice balls this morning?" Max nodded, but Pikachu was out of hearing range, so he continued to pick the blue, black-speckled berries with long, curly leaves that he had found.

Brock gathered a few cooking supplies and food items out of his pack, and promptly began to get a stew together. After Max yelled in her ear for a while, May stumbled off irritably to get some firewood, her eyes still cloudy in thought. Max, who had wanted to sit and think about the Pokémon thoughts troubling his brain, ended up having to keep Togepi out of trouble. When May got back with wood, and they got a cooking fire lit, Togepi kept wandering towards it. Max had to keep scooping her up away from it, because Pikachu was still struggling to carry all of his berries back to their area. He would drop a berry every now and then, and Poochyena would come behind and eat it.

Finally, lunch was ready. Brock checked the PokéNav. 1:00 PM. He handed out bowls and began to ladle stew into each one. Seeing Max's saddened caramel eyes behind his glasses, Brock whispered jokingly to him, "Maybe Ash will smell the food, and the two of them will find their way here."

Max chuckled softly, replying, "Yeah, I can just see Ash walking into camp right now with Misty following him, saying 'Oh, hi guys! Where have you been? Man, Brock, that food smells good! Can I have some?'." Max tried to imitate Ash's voice, but it didn't work out too well, making Pikachu giggle despite his depression.

Though Brock's stew was good, the smell wasn't strong enough to bring Ash and Misty to them as they had halfheartedly hoped. Also, when Pikachu tried to share his berries, no one but Poochyena would eat them after they tasted how hard and extremely bitter they were. The berries ended up being Rawst berries, which grew bitterer the longer and curlier their leaves were. Every time Poochyena ate another Rawst, Max would give him a look, as if saying, 'How the heck can you eat those?' After lunch was over and the stew was packed up, they scattered the some of the Rawsts around to let them grow into trees, and May kept the rest to make PokéBlocks with them, though Poochyena would probably be the only ones to eat those, too.

With everything back in their bags, Togepi back in May's arms, Pikachu on Max's shoulder, and Poochyena in Max's arms, Brock checked the heavily-used PokéNav again, and inquired, "Everyone ready to search some more?"

They nodded, when suddenly Max burst out, "I JUST THOUGHT OF SOMETHING!"

May chuckled a little bit. "Well, good for you, Max. It's about time you started thinking about things," she said sarcastically.

"No, really, May! I've been trying to figure something out, and I just now thought of it! Our Pokémon!"

"What about them?" Brock asked.

"Our Pokémon can help us search for Ash and Misty!" Brock groaned at not realizing this so much sooner, as Ash, Misty, and himself had done this many times before. May looked slightly downcast.

"Why didn't I think about that?" May muttered sadly.

"'Cause I'm wise and you're not," Max explained quickly, and turned to Brock, saying, "Do you know which Pokéballs contain which Pokémon?" He indicated Ash's belt around his waist.

Starting with the one in the front first, Brock counted back, "I think it's Treecko, then Bayleef, then Noctowl, then Corphish."

"What about Misty's?" May asked, holding out the gym leader's four Pokéballs.

Brock inspected the scratches and used look of the Pokéballs, and was able to make a guess based on the order in which Misty had caught her Pokémon. "This oldest looking one has to be Staryu, this other Pokéball with the worn hinges must be Psyduck, the Net Ball is Corsola, and this new Pokéball has to be her new Wingull."

"Go! Treecko! Noctowl!" Max was shouting, throwing out their Pokéballs. When the Pokémon appeared, Max quickly explained their situation and added, "Noctowl, soar high over the trees and see if you can see anything. Treecko, you climb in the trees and look around, okay?" The two Pokémon nodded, and took off to their proper jobs. Pikachu leaped off of Max's shoulder and climbed the tree after Treecko.

"I choose you! Wingull!" When the water bird appeared and landed on her arm, May explained, "Ash and Misty are missing, okay, Wingull? We need you to fly up there with Noctowl and see if you can spot anything." With an affirmative cry, Wingull followed Noctowl very high up into the clear blue sky. May got out a Pokéball from her own group and called out Beautifly. "Beautifly, I need you to help us find Ash and Misty. Just hover right over the treetops, okay?"

"Crobat! Go!" Brock called out his Pokémon. "Crobat, go with Beautifly. We're looking for Ash and Misty, okay?" The bat and the butterfly took off to the tops of the trees. After the great moment of excitement in calling on their Pokémon for help, Brock, May and Max took a deep breath and started out walking again. "Okay. Let's look for Ash and Misty."

Ash looked over at Misty. Misty looked over at Ash. Both knew they were thinking the same thing; they could just see it in the other's eyes.

_We are in so much trouble._

They glanced back at the twenty-four lines of words that had been deeply scratched into the silvery walls. The lines were in six groups with four lines each. It was a poem, a rhyming poem, but the words chilled both of them in a way that the snow hadn't chilled them when their spirits were in their bodies. As they hovered high above the floor in the second cavern, Ash glanced at the first and second lines of the fourth verse and thought again, _we are in so much trouble... or as Team Rocket would say, 'double trouble'._ He silently read the whole poem on the wall again.

'From angst, despairing memory,

Comes this warning I must give,

Down this grotto, go no further,

For I'd like to see you live.

Though sights beyond are inspiring,

In awe, take your last breath,

For you draw close to the Evil One,

Whose skill will bring you death.

The ghostly spell is broken,

If returned within the hour,

This hope rests within defeating,

The Evil One with skillful power.

If past three score minutes,

Gone forever, are you, I fear,

Aside from spirits like yourself,

None will see you, or will hear.

Evil say himself all-knowing,

Of strange mystery install,

Only living soul mate hear,

Their ghostly other's call.

So go back, I say, go back,

To the egress you should head,

For the consequence is high,

To awaken, and be dead.'

Misty must have reread the first two lines in the fourth verse as he had, because she suddenly whispered, "How long do you think we've been out of our bodies, Ash?"

Ash could only shake his head. "...I don't know, Misty... I just don't know... I don't think it's been an hour yet, though. So that's really all the time we have? An hour to defeat Haunter, or the 'Evil One' as it says on here, and get back in our bodies? How can we possibly defeat him, Misty?"

"Maybe it means 'defeat' as in a Pokémon battle. That's all I can figure."

"Well, that's bad, since we don't have any of our Pokémon with us. That must be why Sableye was battling Haunter to give us a chance to get away. What are we going to do now?"

"I don't know, Ash!" Ash tore his eyes away from the poem carved in the smooth wall and looked over at Misty. She was standing stiffly in midair, her arms wrapped tightly across her chest hugging herself, her eyes downcast. Her voice hadn't been so crisp as it had been helpless sounding.

Misty didn't understand all of the changes that had come over her. These caverns... they had given her a chance to be alone with Ash, and had made her realize more than ever how much she truly loved him. However, she felt that she was starting to be weaker than she had been before, at least weaker-acting. She, like everyone else, was going through life with a certain uncertainty about certain things, but this was something she had never shown to anyone or let anyone see before. He tough, strong force field was slowly crumbling, which scared Misty, because it was what kept her going.

Ash began to feel that he had been a bit demanding asking her what they should do next. After all, how was she to know if Ash didn't? She didn't know any more than Ash did. _She looks so scared,_ Ash realized, and he hovered a bit closer to her pale blue form.

"Hey, Misty," he said quietly, as she slowly looked up at him, "I'm sorry about what I said. I didn't mean to make you upset or anything."

"I'm not upset," Misty replied, her tone as icy as she could make it at the moment.

Ash, however, could tell that Misty was trying to look strong in front of him. "Hey..." he whispered, not really having anything to say at the moment, but feeling as though he ought to. Impulsively, Ash glided right over to her and wrapped his arms around her in a hug. Misty was surprised, to say the least. "It's okay," Ash whispered in her ear, "I'm scared too, and I don't know what we should do either, so we're both the same in that way. You don't have to worry, because I'm here, and I know I don't have to worry, because you're here, so together we can figure out what to do. Okay?"

_How can he be such a mind reader and be so dense at the same time?_ Ash, without knowing it, had just taught Misty something that she had been half-unconsciously longing to know. She knew that she would have to be her true self in order for Ash to ever really love her (if he was even going to), and she had been trying her best by not letting her temper explode at him. Suddenly, though, Misty could read the subtext to Ash's words, even if Ash didn't know that his words had a subtext in the first place. He meant that she was free to be herself around him. When she was around Ash, she didn't need to have the tough force field she had always used. She could simply show the emotions that were real.

_Is this what people in love are like? _Misty wondered as Ash let go over her and watched her carefully, _Being yourself one hundred percent... is that what is required to not only be in love, but to keep being in love forever? If it is... I'm willing to do it. _

"Thanks, Ash," Misty said, looking him straight in the eyes and smiling a true smile, "I am scared, but you're right. We can figure this out together."

"Yeah... and even if we can't," Ash grinned, teasing her in a friendly way, "at least I won't be alone without you."

Misty breathed in a rapturous breath. "...Ditto for me."

After a contented pause, Ash turned back to the poem and composed himself into a serious manner. Most of the poem made a half-sort of sense, except the fifth verse, so he just read the rest of it. "We really do need to figure out a way to defeat Haunter, and we don't have a lot of time. Less than an hour, in fact. If we don't, then the poem says..."

"...our bodies will die and we'll be ghosts forever," Misty finished as Ash trailed off. He nodded. "...Ash?"

"What?"

"We might not make it out of here alive."

"...I know." They were in a very brusquely thoughtful silence when a very strange thing happened.

Suddenly, they heard hysterical shouting coming from the end of the cavern tunnel to their left. If Haunter had appeared in front of them and apologized for his actions, it couldn't have surprised them more.

"HELP! THIS THING IS GOING TO HURT US! HELP! WE'RE GOING TO DIE!"

Ash saw that Misty, who of course was just as surprised as he was about hearing human voices growing nearer, was actually unimpressed.

"Oh, yeah?" She muttered darkly, in response to the voices' distress cries, "Even if whoever it is really dies, they'll probably not die before we do..."

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

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NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 6's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter. 


	8. Big Trouble's Gonna Follow You

First of all, I have to apologize extremely hard to all of my dedicated fans (and new fans, too, which I am happy to see). I am so ashamed and embarrassed as all get-out that it has been months since I posted the last chapter. Not that anyone is looking for excuses, but school has been Absol-utely killer. I hope that you can understand that, and please forgive me (even though I can't forgive myself yet). For those who e-mailed me (which I horrendously never got back to and I'm extremely sorry beyond all reason), I appreciate your concern about my stories and your offer to help out. (I never had time to write another story, gladdecease. I can barely keep up with this one!) If I need some help another time, I'll definitely e-mail 'ya! Also, if anyone is wondering, this story is a bit over halfway done now. Anyway, the congratulations goes to Sparklewolf, Kuwabara Shizuru, J.C. the Wabbit, Alex Warlorn, and bluejolteon459, who got Chapter Seven's title right. The line "… what happens to our souls?…" comes from the song _To Know The Unknown_ from the Pokémon 3: The Ultimate Soundtrack CD. On with the book!

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**CHAPTER 8: …Big Trouble's Gonna Follow You…****  
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The hysterical shouting coming down the snowy cavern hallway soon grew progressively louder. Ash and Misty floated, with a kind of ghostly bated breath, high in the air, waiting and watching the tunnel to their left for the owners of the voices to appear. Ash felt Misty glide over close beside him to his right, and he glanced at her with an anxious look. She returned the same kind of look. They were both extremely curious and wary about who could be coming down the hall, and what they were trying to escape from.

"WE'RE GOING TO DIE! WE'RE GOING TO DIE! WE'RE GOING TO DIE!" one voice kept screaming rapidly in a high pitch.

"SHUT UP AND KEEP RUNNING!" another voice screamed in response.

"BUT WE'RE GOING TO DIE!" the first replied again.

"That's weird," Ash muttered quietly, "Those voices… I feel like I've heard them all before…" Misty nodded in agreement. They sounded quite familiar, and the instant before two people came in sight, she realized who it had to be.

"Ash! It's Team Rocket!"

The two human members of the official Pikachu Stalking Gang were just barely visible from where the pale blue spirits of Ash and Misty were floating. They were running hard, and the closer they got to Ash and Misty, the more it was plain to see that no one else was with them. Somehow, Ash wasn't really surprised that it was them. They always seemed to turn up at critical moments, either unintentionally or on purpose. "Yeah, it's Jesse and James alright," Ash replied, then added, "but where's Meowth?"

Misty shrugged. "And what are they doing all of the way down here?"

"And what are they running from? …There's nothing behind them…"

Soon, Jesse and James were almost underneath the spirits of Ash and Misty. James suddenly tripped and fell flat on his face in the snow. Jesse quickly grabbed his hand from out of the flurries and gave a great tug. "Come on, James!" she shrieked, "That-" She stopped as she looked back at the way they had come and saw that the only thing behind them was snow. Her shoulders drooped incredulously and she dropped James hand limply. James hadn't moved an inch, but it sounded as if he was sobbing into the snow. After a stunned moment, Jesse glanced over at James, got an irritated look on her face, and gave his leg a light kick. "Get up!"

The answer was somewhat incoherent from the flurries. "But that Sneasel-"

"It's not even here, James!" Jesse muttered very tetchily. After a moment's pause, James sat up in the snow and glanced behind him, which was Sneasel-free.

"…Where'd it go?"

The reasonable question earned James a smack on the head. "Where do you think? It didn't even follow us down here through that hole, stupid!"

Rather mournfully, James said the only think he could think of. "…Oh." Unfortunately, Jesse was very embarrassed about finding out that she had been fleeing from nothing, and took her anger-disguised humiliation out on James once more, by hitting him on the head again. He took the abuse without comment, though his emerald eyes looked quite dull. He stood up, brushing some snow off of his white Team Rocket uniform.

Jesse seemed unsure about what she would decide for her and James to do next. Her arms were crossed and she was glancing around gravely. James stood still and waited, head down, silently adjusting the straps of the backpack he was wearing. Finally, Jesse commented, "Well, these caves could go on forever, and there doesn't seem to be anything decent here to look at… or steal," at this, Ash and Misty exchanged contemptuous looks, "so we ought to head back the way we came."

"What if that Sneasel is waiting to attack us?"

Her sapphire eyes narrowed and James gulped slightly. "Then we'll battle it. You should have sent your Cacnea out the first time, and then we wouldn't even be down here, and we could get out easier."

"You didn't send out Seviper or Dustox or Wobbuffet, ei-" James rubbed his head where Jesse had hit him again.

"Well, it doesn't matter now, does it?! Now, James, how many Escape Ropes do we have?"

"Uh, let me check." He slipped the backpack off and set it on the snowy ground, then knelt down beside it. He opened it up. Ash glided a little closer, trying to get a better view as James rummaged around for the Escape Ropes. "I wasn't counting when I was sorting everything a little while ago, but let's see… some Oran berries… some Potions, some Super Potions… some- oh, here we go… one… two… three, four, five… six… we have six Escape Ropes, I think."

"Well, good. We only need two anyway. Come on." Jesse waited authoritatively while James tried to repack the backpack with the items he had set out on the snow. Some of the items didn't seem to want to go back in so it would zip closed. After a moment or two of watching him struggle, she gave a rather exasperated sigh and knelt down beside him to help him out. James glanced over at her, smiling happily, but her face remained mostly impassive. When James looked back down at the backpack, Ash and Misty noticed that the skin below her eyes was somewhat pink.

"What'll we do, Ash?" Misty asked suddenly, surprising him, "Should we just let Team Rocket leave, or should we get their attention?"

"Maybe… maybe they can help us!" Ash began to try to formulate a plan in his head, "If we can tell Team Rocket what happened to us, maybe they can think of a solution, or go find Brock and May and Max! They're probably our only hope, don't you think? They also have a Super Potion, so maybe we can give it to Sableye, so he will heal!" Ash turned his attention to Team Rocket as James was getting the backpack back on. "HEY, TEAM ROCKET! JESSE! JAMES! UP HERE!" He began waving his hands up and down. They showed not even the slightest sign of hearing him.

"Ash!" Misty quickly reached over and grabbed his flailing arm to stop him. Ash looked over at her in surprise. "They're not going to hear you, Ash! Remember the poem?" She glanced back at the engravings father up on the wall to their right. "See, it says, 'aside from spirits like yourself, none will see you, or will hear'. There's no way they'll hear you or see you." With a sigh, Ash nodded, glancing thoughtfully back down at Jesse and James. _Wait… _Misty thought a moment later, not realizing that her right hand was still holding onto Ash's left wrist, _if no one can hear a ghost besides other ghosts… then how did I hear Ash talking when we were in Lavender Town…?_

"How are we going to get their attention then? Write our problem in the snow?" Ash absentmindedly slipped his hand into Misty's in place of his wrist. Misty glanced down at their interlocked fingers, something that was becoming a common but thrilling image. She was beginning to think harder than ever that maybe, just maybe… But there was no time for these thoughts at the moment; she had to answer Ash's question.

"That would certainly take a long time, and we have less than an hour, and what if Team Rocket didn't read it or believe when we did?"

"Well, what are we going to do?" Ash's thoughts were on the Lavender Town incident, as Misty's had been a moment ago. "Pick them up?" He chuckled, until he saw how wide Misty's eyes had become in contemplation.

Jesse hadn't taken ten steps in the direction they had come from when she felt a light touch on the back of her neck. She was about scream at James for spooking her, when she noticed that James was walking right beside her. _It wasn't him…? _She was about to mention the bizarre event when James' eyes grew wide and he stopped dead in his tracks. He whipped his head around to look behind himself, and one of his hands cautiously touched the back of his neck. Jesse stopped walking, too. They were still for a moment, and their eyes connected, both realizing that the other had felt the same thing as they had.

Everything was tense for a moment, when suddenly James gave a loud shriek. Jesse froze as James lifted both of his arms up, glancing back and forth wildly and panicky, as if something was underneath his arms. It was soon apparent that something really was holding him underneath his arms when Jesse realized that James was being pulled up by some strange force, away from the powdery ground, for his feet were no longer touching the snow. He began to kick the air and swing his hands riotously. "HELP! IT'S GOT ME! HELP!" He was slowly being pulled upwards and backwards by an invisible power.

Anger overcame Jesse's shock in a heartbeat. "Hey!" She yelled indignantly, taking a couple of steps forward, even though she had no idea in her mind what she could be up against, "Put him down, whatever you are! He's not yours! You have no right to- AH!" Her demand was cut short by the feel of something light under her own arms. Before she had a chance to even think of retaliation, she found the lightness gripping her firmly and pulling her right off the ground. She shrieked again, and tried to wiggle out of the something's grasp, but it was in vain. She couldn't see what was holding her, so she had no idea where to try to hit or kick.

"Ah! They got you, too!" James yelped, realizing that Jesse was now in the same predicament as he was. They were now about four feet off of the ground and seven feet away from their last footsteps. He reached out a hand to her, and she did the same, but before they could make contact, Jesse was quickly dragged higher up and farther away. Yelling illogically, she kept searching for what was holding onto her, but couldn't see it no matter what she did. James continued to simply thrash back and forth wildly, like a Ninetales with its foot caught in a trap.

"Oh, great," Misty called dully to Ash, trying to keep a firm grip on her captive, "I got the live one."

Ash chuckled as James continued to writhe away, trying to escape Misty's grip under his arms. "Well, at least we got their attention!"

"Yeah, and what was that you said again, Jesse?" Misty asked as she turned her attention to Ash's hostage, but Jesse remained completely deaf to the ghost girl's rather jeering questions, "What did you say? 'He's not yours'? What does that mean? That he's yours?" Ash chuckled along with Misty, despite the fact that he missed her connotation almost completely. He gave a glance behind himself, to make sure that he wouldn't glide into anything as he floated backwards, his captive trailing through the air.

"It's a good thing that they don't weigh much to us right now, or else there's no way we'll be able to carry them very far."

"We're going to have to go fast. We don't have a lot of time, don't forget!" Misty paused for a moment as James tried to kick off of the wall that she had glided too close to on accident. "I wish he wasn't so jumpy."

"NOW WE'RE REALLY GOING TO DIE!" James began shrieking repeatedly, whipping back and forth as much as he could while in the firm hold something undetectable had under his arms.

Despite her continuing panic, Jesse tried to think logically now. "This isn't any psychic-like attack…" she muttered, still trying to twist around and see what was holding on to her, "because Confusion and Disable control the whole body… This can't be an invisible Pokémon, I don't think… the only common Pokémon that could do that would be a Kecleon… but they have those red zigzag stripes, and they can't fly anyway…" Suddenly, Jesse sucked in a nervous breath, and after a pause, "…so that means that the only thing left… would be that… these things are…"

"GHOSTS!" James yelped shrilly, "THEY'RE GOING TO KILL US!"

Seeing how gently and smoothly they were being carted backwards through the cold cavern air, Jesse gave him an irritated glance. "Even though these must be ghosts, why would they kill us, James? If they were going to, why didn't they just do it when they found us?"

After a rather thoughtful pause for one so horrified, he gave his answer. "TORTURE! TORTURE, TORTURE, TORTURE! THEY'LL TORTURE US FIRST!" Suddenly, James was obviously being shaken back and forth by the invisible force. He screamed, his voice at a high octave.

"Yeah, I'll show you torture," Misty was muttering gravely under her breath, swinging James back and forth as they continued gliding backwards, "Try not being able to get back into your own body." Ash gave her a rather withering glance, though he smiled too, and she stopped her 'torture'. Ash saw that her pale blue face had deepened in its color under her nose, a ghostly kind of blush at Ash's reprisal.

" 'S okay," Ash smiled, "If we scare them much more though, they might not help us." Misty nodded in understanding, but kept her eyes reverted. Ash slowly realized that Misty seemed to care very much about what he thought of her. He cared an enormous amount about what Misty thought of him, but he hadn't thought that she would be the same. _I wonder why…_ "Hey, Mist." She looked at him in the eyes. Ash suddenly lost what he had been going to say. After a moment, he shook his head with nothing to speak about. Misty laughed, and seeing her smile made Ash grin, too.

Seconds began to tick by as Ash and Misty glided along the passageway, carting the two Team Rocket humans. Now that their souls were adjusted to the weight of their cargo, Ash and Misty stopped gliding backwards and floated forwards instead, to make better time. James was still completely freaking out, lashing about wildly. Jesse had completely given up on trying to get loose of the ghostly grip and was hanging limply in midair. Watching James in a Magikarp-like Flail, she muttered tiredly, "James, give it up. You're not going to get loose. Let's just wait and see where these ghost things are taking us, okay?"

He stopped in mid-thrash and went slack like Jesse. "Well, fine. When they torture us and kill us, don't tell me I didn't warn you." Jesse rolled her eyes, but she was smiling just a little bit. It was when she reached over and patted James' right shoulder in mock reassurance that the two ghost souls realized how close they had drifted. However, neither Ash nor Misty dragged their captives away from one another. After all, Jesse and James weren't trying to escape anymore anyway.

Up ahead, Ash saw the hole in the ground that he and Misty had fallen through to get to the third cavern. He nodded at it. "There it is." Misty nodded, too, and they glided over to it.

Once Jesse and James saw the hole in the snow, they both stiffened anxiously, wondering what was going to happen. "Uh, oh," Jesse mumbled cautiously. James' eyes grew wide in anticipation.

"Down you go," Misty commanded to her unhearing captive, as she unceremoniously let go of James' arms and he fell, with a small scream, through the hole. A second later, after they heard a slight 'oof' from below, Ash let go of Jesse, and she plunged through the hole after her partner, also with a cry of alarm. The two souls couldn't resist a small chuckle at the strange situation that they and Team Rocket were in, and they glided down through the gap in the snowy floor, too.

After a moment or two of gaining back their breath, Jesse and James struggled to gather themselves up out of the deep snow they were in. Jesse finally got her feet on the ground and was shaking flurries off of herself when she felt a jolt at her back and thought the 'ghosts' were picking her up again. However, it turned out to only be James, who had thrown himself at her and was clinging to her for dear life. "Are they gone?!" he said urgently, looking at her annoyed face over her shoulder, "Do you think the ghosts have left, Jess?"

Trying to shrug him off, Jesse answered forcefully, "I don't know, James, but get a hold of yourself! You were calm just a second ago."

"I know, but now we're free! …Or are we free?"

Jesse tried again to wiggle herself out of his death grip, but it didn't work. "I don't kn…" Jesse trailed off as she finally saw the place that they had been dropped into. "Look where we are, James!" she said in a hushed whisper, "This place is so huge, and white!" Both Team Rocket members suddenly stood still in awe at the circular cavern of snow below them, very different from the tunnels above in its own way, with its dripping stalactites and vast emptiness. Jesse unconsciously leaned back into James for a moment, resting against him, and they both forgot what they were talking about before.

Perhaps it was a good thing that neither could hear the ghostly girl, who was floating nearby, whisper to herself, "Awe. How sweet." They were about to be disturbed enough anyway.

Out of the blue, as they studied the wintry grotto from the cliff they were on, Jesse felt a sharp jab in her side. Of course, her first thoughts were that it was James, but that was quickly disproved by the fact that his arms were still around her neck. A second later, the first jab was followed up by a second, and Jesse said quickly, "Those ghosts aren't gone yet, J- ah!" The third jab was more like a push, and Jesse tripped sideways, and then fell over into the snow when James let go over her in fright.

"They're back!" James squealed, retracting his hands to his chest quickly and trying to look small and unimportant.

"I don't think they ever left," Jesse muttered sullenly, pushing herself up out of the white flurries.

James felt a hard prod in his side now, and with a yelp, ran away from the direction that the prod had come from. He ran right past Jesse, and then paused to look back at her, still getting up from her fall. Despite his fear of the 'ghosts', James was about to go back and help Jesse up, when he was knocked down backwards by a thump on his chest. The wind was about knocked out of him, as the backpack that had miraculously stayed on now jabbed into his back when he fell. He lay panting, unthinking, for a moment, until he saw, out of the corner of his eyes, Jesse running the way that he had been going. Luckily for him, she reached down and grabbed his hand as she went past, dragging him to his feet.

_We must look ridiculous, _Jesse thought, _falling and jerking and flopping about for no apparent reason. Good thing no one we know can see us right now. It's not very dignified-looking for the great and powerful Team Rocket to look like a pair of drunken Spinda. _

"Why won't they go in the direction that we're trying to get them to go in?" Misty muttered, as she and Ash gliding along quickly behind the retreating 'villains'.

"Well, at least they're headed towards the snow slide, now," Ash observed, "but it's like rounding up a flock of Mareep without a Growlithe."

"Yawh!" Misty exclaimed for Ash's enjoyment, pretending to crack a whip at Jesse and James as they continued their fast trudge through the snow. Ash chuckled. The two runners remained oblivious to the identity of the 'ghosts', and were only a foot or so from the edge when they finally saw the precipice. Both immediately ground their heels into the thick snow to stop, which they did just in time. James clutched Jesse's hand harder, almost cutting her circulation off.

"How do we get down?!"

Jesse was at a loss. The cliff was extremely steep and very far away from the bottom of the cavern, so, of course, jumping was not a desirable option. Then, she spotted the slide. The strange curve that ran along the wall was only half covered in snow, as if someone had already scrapped part of it off. Jesse quickly pointed it out. "Over there, James!" She pulled him to the edge of the slide. "This is the only way down."

"Are you sure it's safe?" James questioned anxiously. Ash could only watch as an impatient Misty glided over and gave James a slight shove, knocking him into Jesse, who had nothing to fall into herself. Instead, she fell over the edge, James loosing his balance and falling over, too, and both began to slide down the snowy slide on their stomachs.

Their frightened screams filled the cavern, growing a bit softer the farther down they slid. Ash and Misty floated side by side at the top of the cliff, just watching them slide down. Ash gave Misty a questioning look, but Misty went ahead and explained gravely, "We don't have a second more to waste. There's no telling how long we've been down here already, or how much of an hour we have left." Ash nodded.

"Misty," he murmured.

"…What?"

Ash was about to say, 'Don't worry', but then realized that this huge situation probably was something to worry about. Instead, he muttered the only reassurance he was one hundred percent positive was true. "I'm here."

Jesse was getting tired of ending up face down in flurries, as much as she loved snow. Her cheeks were beginning to sting from the freezing rub of iciness that she kept landing in. However tired she was getting, though, it didn't stop her from getting back up again. She gave a small shiver at the temperature, then looked down at James, who had stayed where he had slid to a stop. He was staring up at her staring down at him. Both of them blinked for a moment, then James said, before Jesse could inquire, "I think I hit my arm on something. It's rather sore, and the hurt makes it hard to sit up."

With a sigh, Jesse reached down and helped him to his feet, avoiding unwanted contact with his left wrist, which he had indicated. Then, yet a moment later, she carefully took his wrist in both of her hands and gently began to touch it in several places. James winced several times, too, but kept his eyes fixed on a smooth rock situated against the cliff wall, so as to not concentrate on the tenderness in his wrist. His stare rather startled Ash and Misty, who both thought that James had seen them, for they had just alighted on the rock (the one they had slept on the previous night). After a tense moment, they realized he wasn't really looking at them and became calm again.

"It's not broken," Jesse muttered her final analysis of his throbbing wrist, "or twisted or pulled or anything. You just hit it against a rock or something. You'll be okay, if you just hold some of this snow on it so it doesn't swell. The hurt'll go away in a minute or two."

"Thanks, Jesse," James murmured mildly, taking her suggestion and gathering a lump of snow to apply to his wrist. Especially since she had been nice acting for a moment, he knew she wouldn't accept his gratitude. She didn't.

"Don't thank me. Thank Ho-Oh, or something." Her tone quickly became her 'normal' one: harsh. "Let's go, James."

"…Where?"

She cuffed his head, though it was a lighter cuff than usual. "Wherever those footprints go, stupid!" James just then noticed the two sets of foot tracks in the snow, leading away to the other side of the cavern. Ash and Misty had just noticed them, too, and realized that although some Ice- Type Pokémon had created snow to cover their tracks in the other caverns, a Pokémon hadn't covered their tracks in this third cavern.

"Do ghosts make footprints?" James suddenly questioned.

Jesse shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe they're not footprints from those ghosts that brought us here, but they are shoe-prints, so there must be at least two people down here. They might be able to get us past the ghosts, and that Sneasel, so we can get out of here. Let's find them."

"And hurry before the ghosts come back!" her partner added quickly, rubbing the snow onto his wrist.

The two souls watched Team Rocket (minus Meowth) sprint through the snow, following their old footprints out of the current cavern they were in and onward to the ice-floored caverns. Suddenly, Misty had a horrible sinking feeling.

"Ash! What if Team Rocket does end up finding our bodies? I know we can get a Super Potion out of James' bag to give to Sableye, and I know that Team Rocket might somehow be able to help us, but what if Haunter sneaks up on them, and catches them, and makes them into ghosts, too?!"

Ash's eyes grew wide. "Shoot! I hadn't thought of that!" He considered possibilities fast. "Let's keep up with them. That's all we can do, and if it looks like things are going to turn out bad, they could probably use their Pokémon to battle… I guess. But let's get going, too." Misty nodded, and they soared off across the cavern to follow the two Rocket members.

When they finally reached Jesse and James again, the two had made it onto the ice and were attempting to cross the floor to the next cavern… emphasis on 'attempt'. Jesse was about halfway across, but was now almost sitting on the ice, clutching nervously onto a stalagmite. James, having found it necessary to abandon his cold compress, was out in the middle of the ice, too, except that he was on his stomach on the ice and was try to get back up again. He had ended up in an area where there were no stalagmites for several feet in all directions, and the ice was, of course, impossible to hold onto, so he was essentially stranded.

_If I thought that looking like a drunken Spinda was bad, _Jesse thought, _it's nothing compared to how pathetic we look now. We look like a pair of incompetent Caterpie. _She reached out a hand to James, but he was too far away to grab a hold of it.

Then, for no apparent reason, the completely stationary James suddenly began to slide across the ice again. He didn't notice that he was moving, though, and didn't realize something had happened until he had slid up to a stalagmite and bumped his head on it. Jesse's eyes were wide. She had seen his backpack twitch, as if something had been pulling on it. _Those ghosts are still here…_ Jesse thought in amazement, watching James grab onto the stalagmite and sit up,_ …and they helped James out…_

Jesse put forth another effort to get to her feet, which she somehow managed, and then slid across to James' stalagmite. She saw that he hadn't realized that the ghosts were still nearby, for which she was grateful. He would probably freak out again. The more Jesse thought about it, the more she considered that, though their prodding was sometimes painful, these ghosts might be only peaceful. James stood up, as she had, but quickly grabbed onto Jesse's arm to prevent himself from falling down again. Jesse gave him a suspicious look, and the skin beneath James' emerald eyes grew pink.

"The ice is slippery," James said timidly as an excuse, which was a rather pathetic though true one at that. Jesse gave a snort of skepticism, but didn't choose to physically hurt him this time, and James vaguely wondered why. Then, as if they hadn't been dragged around enough for one day, Jesse felt the strange lightness of the ghosts again, pushing her by the shoulders, away from the stalagmite. Jesse quickly let go of the icy cone and let herself be pushed along the ice without fuss. Because he was still holding onto her arm, James was pulled away from the stalagmite, too, and he gave a shriek.

"It's okay, James," Jesse muttered quietly, not wanting to disturb the possibly friendly ghosts at their continuing work of taking the two people wherever they needed to go. James seemed about to retort, or at least ask why this troublesome situation would be okay, when Jesse slipped pulled her arm out of James' grasp, and put her hand in his instead. James instantly swallowed his words, and reluctantly let the vaporous touch on his back push him along the ice next to Jesse. The push was slow at first, though quickly gained speed, and the ghosts let them lean backwards into the push, so that they wouldn't fall forward onto the ice. Side by side, Jesse and James were hauled across the ice room and to the left, which brought them to another cavern.

Both Jesse and James immediately gasped as they beheld the magnificent sight of a million colored crystals, stacked in the huge, arching crystalfall. They, like the two that were pushing them, had never seen so many colors in all of their lives, and they didn't immediately get over the shock of the color scheme change. Both were completely speechless, and neither could tear their eyes away. Jesse suddenly noticed that the ghosts were pushing them right up towards the crystalfall, and she wondered if the ghosts had been trying to bring them to this place the whole time. _If so, I don't mind a bit._ Jesse and James were pushed straight under the arch, so that crystals were to their left and above them. They gazed about, breathless, as the glimmer of the colors shone down on them like a cathedral stained-glass window. Then, as suddenly as they had seen the millions of colors, they were pushed out from under the arch and on towards the other side of the cavern. Jesse felt rather disappointed deep inside, and James craned his neck slightly to look back, but they had already gone around the next bend.

The next few caverns that the ghosts hastily pushed them through were like the first ice-floored cavern: all ice, stalagmites, and stalactites. The speed they were traveling at now was fast enough that their hair blew backwards, and Jesse prayed that the ghosts wouldn't let go of them, or they'd surely go smashing right into the wall or get impaled by a stalagmite at the swift rate.

As they went speedily along, James began to notice a strange thing. The light in the cavern, which neither had given any thought to before, was slowly growing dimmer. He had begun to get a bit spooked, when the surreal invisible hands pushing him suddenly let go, and a split second later grabbed him under the arms. He gave a startled cry, almost falling to the floor before the hands could get a good grip again. A moment later, James could tell, by the weird jerk Jesse made, that the same thing had happened to her, too. They were both forced to let go of each other's hands when the ghosts suddenly jerked them off of the ice and began to glide them forward, a few feet above the floor at the same fast pace. Both Jesse and James gave each other horrified looks, then, glancing down, each gave a horrified gasp at the icy floor. Straight below them, the ice had sloped very steeply down, and was dotted with sharp lethal stalagmites. "Oh, please don't drop us, please, please, please," James whimpered pitifully.

After a tense moment, the icy floor below them leveled off and the ghosts slowly lowered the frightened pair back onto the ice, prodding them forward firmly. Before giving herself a swift push off of a stalagmite to head where the ghosts had directed, Jesse paused, realizing how eerily and whisperingly silent the cavern had become, and how dim the light had gotten. She glanced forward, where a leftward bend in the cavern wasn't far off, and had a strange feeling that they were finally coming to their destination.

When Jesse and James finally slid to the bend and went through the opening, they gasped in amazement and incredulousness. This last cavern, the farthest underground, the darkest, was a mess. The floor was scattered hazardously with broken stalactites, and also some stalactites that were still intact but were jabbed forcefully through the icy floor. The ice was cracked everywhere, creating a delicate situation that was dangerous to disturb. The walls at the rounded back of the grotto were full of holes, a few big, a bunch small. Above the frigid black water at the back, the airspace was filled with small violet Shuppets, whispering and gliding about as if nothing unusual had happened in their home in the past while, though the whispering was actually quieter than before.

Glancing from the Shuppets back to the floor, James commented quietly, "This place looks like the Ice Field at Indigo Plateau after the finals."

Jesse nodded. "And the things that brought us here definitely have to be ghosts of some kind. Look at all of those little ones up there." She noticed one of the Shuppets that was far away from the main group, and rather close to her, was staring at her with a frown on its face. Jesse was tempted to yell and ask it what exactly it was staring at, when the Shuppet's three-colored striped eyes shifted from her to the floor far to Jesse's left. In curiosity, Jesse looked around her partner at what the Shuppet was staring at.

"JAMES!" Jesse shrieked in horror, grabbing onto his arm with one hand and pointing at the appalling sight with the other. James quickly gazed over and, though he had grabbed onto the stalagmite they were near, almost fell over in aghast astonishment.

"The Twerps!" he whispered. The two pale bodies of 'the Main Twerp' and 'the Main Female Twerp' were lying side by side on the ice near the wall. Jesse and James where completely staggered, and couldn't think or speak, but after a moment, James swiftly pushed off of the stalagmite towards the bodies. Jesse, still in shock, stayed behind, squatting down beside the stalagmite and holding tightly onto it. When James slid to a stop next to Ash and Misty, and gazed down at their expressionless faces, he felt an awful chill in his chest that had nothing to do with the cavern temperature. He bent closer to them, and then kneeled beside them on the ice, but even still, James couldn't hear the slightest sound of breath from either one or see the small rise and fall of their chests. They were completely still and silent, deadly still and silent, and their skin was the milkiest translucent white he had ever seen. James began to shake involuntarily, and had to put a gloved hand to his eye to brush away an unbelieving tear.

"James…" Jesse whispered through her ragged breath, her eyes choked with moisture threatening to fall. His back was to her, and she couldn't see what he was doing. She felt scared, very scared, and she desperately wanted to hear James say that the two main twerps were all right. What she feared the most at the moment was that he would say just the opposite, but she wasn't sure if she would want to know if it was true. Jesse saw, yet again, that against all of the rivalry between the two groups, Team Rocket was fond of the twerps, and for some reason, it was something that never changed, even if it was very hidden at times. What she feared had happened was so awful that she wouldn't have wished it on her worst enemy, which was, in fact, the twerps (though Cassidy could be an exception). She did not want to hear James say that they were lost beyond hope, but she wanted him to at least do something and not just sit there. _They can't be gone… not those two…_ From her position, Jesse could just barely see the two hands that were resting limply on each other. _Not those two… not the Main-… not Ash and Misty… James is so convinced that you two are in love that he bet a bunch of money with Meowth, and I see what he's saying about that, too, so it just can't… you two can't be…_

"Jess," James murmured finally, "I think… I think… I think they're d-"

"Sableye," a hoarse voice interrupted, and James and Jesse twitched in fright, glancing over at the violet Pokémon that had been watching them the entire time. The two Team Rocket members had been so stunned at seeing the two motionless bodies on the ice that they hadn't noticed the Darkness Pokémon only a few feet from them. Sableye was lying on his stomach on the ground, with his paws curled up under his body like a Delcatty, his back arch stiffly from the pain in his spinal vertebras. He slowly licked at the dried blood on his lower lip and stared at James dully. _So, these must be some of their friends. They must have brought them down here to help or something, but I don't know how they can unless they have really strong Pokémon. Otherwise, they better get out of here soon, before HE notices them. There's no way I could battle HIM again right now. Everything hurts so badly. _Sableye could see Ash's and Misty's souls floating just above the two devastated older trainers, and saw Ash gliding toward the boy that the girl had called James.

James was about to furiously inquire to the Pokémon if he was the one that had slain the two motionless people, when he felt a tug on his backpack and heard the zipper unzip. James had almost forgotten all about the two ghosts that had brought them here until he felt something being pulled out of his backpack, and the zipper being closed back up. Both Jesse and James now had a chance to see how strange it looked to be carried by ghosts as they watched a Super Potion float its way over to the aching Sableye. Sableye glanced up in amazement at the saffron-and-orange spray bottle, but both of the people watching felt that the Pokémon was more amazed to see the bottle than to see it floating. Sableye gave a weak, but joyous cry of, "Sable!" as the trigger on the potion container pushed in and he felt the healing spray touch his weary violet skin. It sank in, giving almost instant relief to the same amount of pain that had taken weeks to go away naturally from his last severe battle. He hadn't had the beautiful soothing feeling of a trainer's item since Haunter had taken his master away from him, and he basked in it as the Super Potion brought back his strength and energy.

Jesse and James watched, cheeks slightly tear-stained now, as the spray bottle kept spraying and spraying until the potion container was almost empty. James was feeling angrily wary. If the Sableye was the one who had done the dastardly act to Ash and Misty, then it was a bad thing that he was being healed. Yet, then, James wondered, what if the Sableye was a harmless bystander, or had even tried to save the two people? The Darkness Pokémon had seemed to be almost watching over them, and could have gotten injured by whatever it was that had left the two humans' bodies stationary. That would explain why one of the ghosts was healing him, James realized, but then a new thought came to him. He and Jesse had figured out that what had picked them up had been ghosts, but…

_Who are the ghosts?_

When the container was completely empty, the invisible spirit set the bottle down lightly on the ice. Sableye slowly stood up, and charily tried to stretch out his back. The pain had diminished to almost nothing. Sableye almost laughed, and caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye of the expressionless Shuppet. He glanced up at it and smiled. The Shuppet did nothing except blink once, but that was enough of a response to make Sableye happy. Sableye then smiled up at the two floating souls smiling down at him, and murmured a short, "Sable," in thanks. The ghostly Ash gave him the 'thumbs up' sign, and the ghostly Misty clasped her hands together gladly.

Sableye's attention suddenly swung back to the Shuppet as it made a sharp movement that immediately caught one of Sableye's hexagonal eyes. It was staring at the other Shuppets that were milling about in their regular routine. Sableye stared at them, too, waiting, sensing that the two humans and the two souls were also intently staring. A very long moment passed, and Sableye was about to reluctantly dismiss the action as nothing, when all of the Shuppet seemed to stop in mid-movement, then rush into a flurry of commotion. They began to quickly return to their homes in the holes in the wall. Sableye breathed in quickly, a breath that he was fortunate to have be a strong breath.

_HE's coming back. _

Sableye could hear the ghostly voices of the two souls gasp in realization of the repeated event, and sense the anxiety of the two humans that knew not what was happening. Sableye glanced at Shuppet. The first time, the fleeing of its fellow kind had not disturbed it in the least bit, and nor had Haunter. Now, Shuppet had known that Haunter was coming out of his den a long time before the others had, though they were closer to where Haunter's den was. Sableye was beginning to think that perhaps the taciturn Shuppet was not only serious and astute as he was, but perhaps knew a lot more about everything that was going on and everything in general than its brethren, which sounded even more like Sableye.

Shuppet glanced down at Sableye, and blinked once.

The temperature of the cavern began to drop unnaturally, and a slight movement in the hole in the center of the back wall quickly shifted Sableye's mind back to his self-appointed job: stop Haunter from taking the souls of people to kill them, and returning the souls of the Ash and Misty people to their bodies. The last item on his list was making Sableye anxious. He had a pretty good perception of time, and he sensed that the hour the two souls had to return was quickly running out. _This encounter with HIM may be their last chance to stop him and get back into their bodies. _

Jesse and James felt as if they were in a strange nightmare. First, they had found the lifeless bodies of the two main twerps that had been missing. Now, it seemed that whatever it was that had taken Ash and Misty's lives was about to come out of the hole in the wall that the Sableye and the Shuppet were staring at. Jesse slid across the ice to where James was kneeling next to the two bodies. Without discretion, Jesse held onto his arm for strength, though she knew that James was as scared as she, if not more.

The Evil One now appeared again out of the hole in the wall, his gray-tinted lavender body beginning to materialize first, then his disembodied hands, and then vermilion-rimmed eyes with the deep black vertical scar across the left eye. The ghostly Ash and Misty both thought at once that Haunter looked a lot more surprised to see people at this moment than he had been when he had seen themselves first. The surprised look on his face increased as he saw that Sableye was no longer bent over double in pain. The expression, however, lasted only a split second for each surprise, then was replaced by an aggressive smile.

Gliding over the black water, Haunter glanced around at the silent crowd, from the frightened Jesse and James, to the uneasy spirits of Ash and Misty, to the lone Shuppet frowning up at him. His eyes came to rest on Sableye glaring fiercely up at him, and Haunter's eyes danced in amusement. He began to speak in his debonair voice, and Sableye was disgusted to see that he talked as if Sableye had never shown his hatred for him. "Why, Sableye! My good friend, you've brought more people for company? How simply magnificent! I can't believe it; four in one day? And you brought back my two new friends, too! Very pleasant to see them again, also. I wonder, are they going to join your master pretty soon? They all might get along well. …So, Sableye, I see you're feeling better! That's very good. It's not nice to have pain linger on for a long time, eh?" Haunter stared obviously into Sableye's eyes, taunting him. "I'd hate to have anyone in pain for a long time. It's much better to get it over and done with in an instant…"

Sableye knew that Haunter was enticing him to attack, bringing up the long pain that Sableye had suffered in his own heart and the short pain that his master had received as Haunter had taken his soul out of his body. Sableye braced himself. He would not attack yet. The pain in his body was gone, but it was taking a while for the Super Potion to get him back to his full strength. He glared up at Haunter in defiance.

Haunter only waited a moment more before resuming his suave words. "Well, I suppose it's time for you to step out of the way, Sableye, because, yet again, I have business to attend-"

"Send us back to our bodies!" the spirit Ash interrupted, yelling at Haunter. He and Misty had been watching Haunter talk in his Pokémon language to Sableye and both could feel that they were a part of the conversation. Ash knew that Haunter wasn't going to do it, but he wanted to let him know his demand.

Jesse and James watched in fearful curiosity as Haunter stopped talking and seemed to look over at thin air. Jesse tightened her grip on his arm, two quick times in a row, their team signal for a silent retreat when the bad situation allowed the chance. James gave a faint nod, glancing at the two bodies of the twerps without moving his head and trying not to let tears form in his eyes again, torn as he was between the grief and fear in their situation. He was positive by now that the twerps were long gone, even though something about the ghosts that had brought them here made him think that something was up. Besides that, though he had discarded many of the high-class etiquette customs of the home he had run away from, the gentlemanly side of his mind was pleading with him that he needed to take their bodies to the other twerps, or he would never feel at peace.

Though he knew, of course, that the two spirits couldn't understand his next words, Haunter knew they would understand his antagonistic laughter. "What? Send you back? You are my victims. You're ghosts, now. And you will always be forever, in a short bit of time now. You will join this Sableye's master in eternal spiritness and walk the air of my caverns with him until you fade away to nothing."

"Send them back!" Sableye screeched. He caught a peek of the Shuppet's skirt billowing out harder for a moment, though Sableye couldn't be sure if the action had any meaning at all.

Haunter, interestingly enough, just rolled his eyes at Sableye's words. "Och, Sableye! That is all you ever say! Don't be so repetitive. It gets quite monotonous." His vermilion-rimmed eyes shifted to stare point blank at Jesse and James. The two people flinched, more frightened then ever. Though he knew that Haunter like to brag and talk, Sableye could tell that Haunter was growing restless, with his two next victims fixed to their spots as if paralyzed, in a way almost begging for him to rip the souls out of them. Sableye had no more time to waste. Ash and Misty's clock was ticking still.

"RUN!" Sableye suddenly whipped around and commanded the Team Rocket members, as he had yelled at Ash and Misty a bit less than an hour ago. Jesse and James understood his message as he flung his paw at them, hastily shooing them. Jesse immediately rose and managed to start across the delicate ice for the exit all in the same movement, though James paused in indecision for a moment, his emerald eyes returning to the twerps' bodies. Jesse did the smallest backtrack, grabbing his hand, screaming something unintelligible, and yanking him away, before James could so much as think again about taking the bodies with them.

Haunter wasted no time in starting after his fleeing targets. As Haunter was about to swoop passed him in pursuit, Sableye tensed his muscles to give a Faint Attack leap at his enemy. However, something gently bumped into him, which became just enough movement to make his paw buckle, and he stumbled instead of leaping. Haunter continued to purse his prey, and Sableye glanced back to see Shuppet hovering very close by, looking at him emotionlessly. His immediate thought was, of course, that Shuppet was trying to stop him from getting to Haunter, and something about that thought made Sableye excruciatingly upset. Then, as Sableye was quickly trying to turn to keep his eyes on where Haunter was, he felt his arm shake unsteadily where he had his claws latched onto the ice. He recognized that the Super Potion was still in the process of healing him, and that he was still too weak to attack anything. Then, Sableye realized that Shuppet had stopped him from attacking Haunter for the reason that one Faint Attack might have sucked all of the energy out of him and not even hit Haunter, or worse, rebound upon himself, which would in no way help anyone in the situation.

Haunter, all too eager to commit a third and fourth separation of souls for the day, was completely surprised when something came right up in front of him, blocking him from the retreating Jesse and James. His black-banded pupils almost crossed to see the thing that was only inches away from his face.

It was Ash. His pale blue arms were stretched out wide on both sides to block Haunter, and his face was set in a resolute fury, eyes blazing silently. He gazed intently into Haunter's red-rimmed eyes, but his gaze seemed to flicker automatically to the vicious vertical scar across Haunter's left eye. From the up-close view that Ash now had, he saw that the black-scabbed gash was very deep in the Pokémon's lavender skin, and enough to make anyone want to look away or flinch. Ash did not, nevertheless, look away or flinch. He was becoming increasingly more upset, anxious, and angry, not so much about what Haunter had done to him, but about the fact that Haunter had dared to hurt Misty, and take her soul away from her body, too.

"You let those people go!" he shouted bravely, putting forth the air of confidence that he usually had, but didn't have at the moment. "And you let us back in our bodies, too! Now!

Haunter had a furious look one moment, as he thought of his potential victims getting away, but it changed to distain as he considered what Ash has demanded. Instead of answering or just going around him, Haunter balled his left detached hand into a fist, and smacked the boy spirit out of his way, exactly as he had done to Sableye at the last encounter. Ash went flying backwards into the silver-marble cavern wall, hit it, and did a strange ghostly slide down the wall.

"ASH!" Misty screamed, horrified, and literally flew from where Ash had left her to face Haunter to his soul lying prostrate and rather dazed, but seemingly uninjured, on the ice. She landed beside him, gasping in air that did ghostly lungs no good, and thoughtlessly placed her hand on his face gently to see if he was okay. He gazed up at her, wide-eyed and blinking in bewilderment.

Haunter rushed to the mouth of the dim cavern to follow the two humans that had retreated. They had already left, however, and there was no trace of them, save for a fading echo of their shouts. He paused, staring out blankly into the ice-floored tunnel, and some thought seemed to come to his mind and help him decide what he was going to do next, with his two would-be victims completely out of sight. He stayed still for a moment longer, staring at the tunnel, his eyes now narrowed but not livid. Slowly, he turned around in the cold cavern air and started back the way he come, from his den in the wall, gliding faster as he settled into his resolve. The expression on his face was almost unreadable, though not quite like the Shuppet, in the sense that he was obviously thinking, but no emotion of anger or disappointment was being shown.

Jesse dragged James across the ice as fast as she possibly could slide. He was slowing her down every time he glanced backwards towards the bend in the tunnel that led to the last cavern. "The Twerps," he whispered grimly, "Ash and Misty. …We shouldn't have left them there, Jess… We shouldn't have left them."

"I know," Jesse snapped suddenly, her voice unbreakable but shaky, as they slid to a stop in front of the icy slide that two ghosts had hauled them over only minutes ago. "You think I don't know that, James? Well, you're wrong. We should have taken their bodies with us, because they're gone… they're dead, they're dead, and the other little twerps will want to see it for themselves, because they would never believe us if we told them. But James, what the heck could we do? That scarred-up Haunter must have been the one that killed them, and it was getting ready to kill us, didn't you see? Besides, that Sableye told us to go… so there." She finished, her voice finally cracking a slight bit, and glanced at James to see if he had noticed. There were tears running from his emerald eyes down to his solemn frown.

Jesse quickly looked away from him, but placed a hand on his shoulder, though only on the pretence that she needed to keep her balance while taking out one of her Pokéballs. "Dustox, I choose you!" The colorful Poison Moth Pokémon burst out of his Pokéball in a flutter of dusty wings and, after a moment of confusion as to where they were, he turned his attention to his master, whom he was again confused to see have tear streaks on her face. "Dustox, fire a line of your String Shot up at that stalagmite way up there, the one hanging just over the top of this rise! Make it extra thick, too, the strongest you can make!" Dustox unquestioningly obeyed, focusing in on the stalactite that she had indicated but misnamed, then forming the most durable mass of the stick substance he could make in his mouth. He shot a thick line of it almost straight up in the air, and it arced as he had calculated, wrapping around the hanging stalactite. Jesse grabbed the end of the solid String Shot and pulled it taunt, rather proud of the Pokémon that she had raised from a Wurmple. "Good job, Dustox. Return."

She gave the String Shot a few more quick tests, then placed her feet a certain length a part on the ice so that she could pull herself up and James could pull himself to the top of the icy slope. She looked back at James. He was staring back at the leftward bend in the icy tunnel behind them. Jesse couldn't read his expression exactly, but she knew what he was feeling… she felt it herself. He suddenly spoke up. "Those ghosts, the ones that brought us here… they…" His emerald eyes abruptly looked straight into her sapphire ones. James could always get his point across to Jesse, and this time was no exception. Jesse nodded slowly. She had figured out the identity of the mysterious ghosts, too.

Sableye was crouched on the ice where he had stayed, bemused by the strange sight of the soul Ash challenging a frightening lethal Pokémon of such a high level, and also confused as to why Haunter had not followed the two people out of the dim last cavern. Besides the people that had just left, the only people that had come down in the cavern during the time that Sableye had been here were Ash and Misty. _…And my master… Why didn't HE pursue those others any farther? HE has no reason not to… _Sableye suddenly felt a spark inside of him, and realized that the Super Potion had just completed its full effect of curing him. He gritted his sharp razor teeth, resentful that he had not been able to battle when he had needed to. _Maybe I can battle the Evil One now, and restore Ash and Misty to their bodies… their hour is close to completion, but not yet up. _Haunter, however, was ignoring Sableye entirely, and the expressionless Shuppet was floating at Sableye's shoulder in a way almost to prevent him from moving. Sableye briefly wondered if Shuppet was stopping him from battling Haunter again, even though the Super Potion was finished healing, but he couldn't figure a reason why it would now. _Maybe… it knows something that I don't… but I know that Ash and Misty only have an hour and it's diminishing quickly; they don't have eternity to defeat Haunter... does it know that? _

Haunter was gliding past the souls of Ash and Misty when he heard a yell, "HEY, YOU! Don't you DARE get near him again, GOT IT?!" Haunter glanced over in slight astonishment at the screaming soul Misty, who seemed to care less whom she was addressing. She was a sight to behold, standing firmly on the ice, her fists clenched at her sides, her arms and legs stiff, her shoulders hunched, her face completely livid and enraged. She gave off the impression of a very sensitive Jigglypuff that had unintentionally put its audience to sleep and was offended to the core by their snoring. Misty was completely bushed, and Sableye gazed at her in awe, almost thinking that she could perform some Ghost- Type attack like Shadow Punch, despite being a person-ghost and not a Pokémon ghost. _She's at least using Mean Look… _Ash, propped up by his elbows, was gaping at her in bewilderment, though not in a dazed bewilderment, but an astonished one. She continued screaming, "You hear that! Don't you DARE touch him again, you… you… SCUM!"

The lavender ghost stared at her for a moment, and a smile played upon his face. _Feisty. _Seeing her standing in front of the boy spirit the way she was, and remembering how the boy had tried to protect her before they were separated from their bodies, and remembering watching from his den as she had clung to the boy when she didn't understand that they were spirits, Haunter laughed coldly, shaking his head the tiniest bit, amused. _'Hope that boy can handle a girlfriend like her for eternity. _Haunter continued to laugh until he had disappeared into his den in the wall, pursuing and pursued by no one.

"Misty…?" Ash managed to sputter. She was standing still, exhaling a breath that wasn't an existent one. She quickly turned to face him, kneeling beside him and helping him to sit up.

"Are you okay, Ash?" Misty said quickly.

"Yeah." Ash answered, then questioned of her outburst at Haunter, "Are you?"

Misty didn't hear the innuendo of his words. "Of course I'm okay! He didn't hit me; he hit you! Are you hurt anywhere?!"

"No," Ash said, still gazing strangely at her, "Being a soul made hitting the wall not so bad. It was kind of good that I was out of my body for that."

"It's not going to be a good thing for long," Misty sighed. They were both quiet for a moment. Then, a small scratch of paws sounded behind them, and they looked around to see Sableye standing before them on his two back paws. Shuppet was hovering close near his left shoulder, but Sableye hadn't noticed. The ghostly Ash and Misty quickly stood up, too, noticing that Sableye's body condition looked even better and stronger than before the time he had battled Haunter to keep the Gaseous Pokémon from taking out their souls. His back was straighter, and his head was raised higher.

"Are you okay now, Sableye?" Ash asked, even though, of course, he knew the answer. Sableye nodded. "We were worried about you." Sableye smiled a bit at that.

"Sableye, we went and saw the writing on the wall that you told us to read, the poem," Misty said, remembering what she and Ash had been doing when they had found Jesse and James. Sableye quickly perked up. "It said that…" Misty was suddenly surprised; she could remember the poem word for word, and she quickly translated the main points of the poem into her own words. "…we should have turned back, or else the 'Evil One's skill' could kill us, but we would be able to reverse what the 'Evil One' had done if we defeated him. The 'Evil One' has to be Haunter, and his 'skill' must be taking people's souls out of their bodies. The poem said that to reverse the 'spell', we'd have to return to our bodies by defeating him in only one hour after it had happened, or else… we're ghosts forever, right?" Sableye had been nodding through Misty's whole explanation, and nodded especially hard at the last question.

Ash quickly spoke up, saying what was on both his and Misty's minds. "Sableye, do you know how much time we have left to defeat Haunter?" Sableye, for a moment, considered not telling Ash and Misty, for now that Haunter had come and gone again, he couldn't see that Haunter would come out again until their hour was up. Also, to go into HIS den to attack would be potential suicide, even now for the half Ghost- type… not that Sableye really cared about what happened to himself at the moment. Finally, Sableye measured out a small inch or so between two of his claws on his left paw, in estimation of the length of time. Ash and Misty both gasped. They knew that a lot of time had been wasted, but didn't know that that much of their hour was gone. After a very long stunned and horrified silence, Ash got the courage to speak again. "What do you think… we should do now, Sableye?" Sableye could see nothing else that they could do. _I… they're going to end up exactly like my master… oh, why, oh, why… _He mildly gestured back through the cavern towards the exit tunnel, not being able to think of anything else at all.

"We can go wait and see if someone else might come along and help," Ash mumbled, now with barely any conviction at all, "Maybe… maybe Team Rocket… might… might come back." Sableye guessed that the 'Team Rocket' Ash referred to must have been the two people that had gotten away from Haunter. "…Come on, Mist. Let's go and wait out there. …It's the best we can do." Misty nodded, glancing miserably over at her and Ash's bodies lying completely motionless across the ice from them.

"Thanks for all you've tried to do to help save us, Sableye," Misty acknowledged quietly. Sableye nodded very sadly, though the tiniest bit pleased at the praise. He hadn't heard much real praise since his master had given it to him last. Ash jerked his head towards the tunnel, signaling that they should go and wait, and both forlorn spirits floated off, waving to Sableye that they would come back if anything occurred that could help, and waving to the Shuppet that Sableye still hadn't noticed was floating by his shoulder. They both guessed, in their minds, that the two Ghost- Types were very close friends… like they were themselves. The souls of Ash and Misty glided out of the last cavern, their pale blue hair ruffled by the ghostly breeze they made.

The sweet afternoon breeze ruffled Noctowl's shiny brown feathers pleasantly as he winged his way across the light blue sky, Wingull soaring along with him a couple of yards away. The bright sun was warm on his feathers, though too warm for comfort, in fact, for a nocturnal bird like the owl was. Wingull wasn't completely free from complaint, either, as she was used to crisp, salty breezes that came in from the ocean near Slateport. However, both birds had a silent agreement that their discomforts weren't important enough to send them any closer to the treetops, which would only allow them to see less of the forest of Route 119 at one time.

Noctowl had his bright amber eyes open as wide as he could open them, scanning the ground through the treetops for the smallest movement that might be his master, Ash. He had caught sight of thirteen Rattata, eleven Zigzagoon, eight Sentret, five Oddish, four Venonat, two Caterpie, and a Teddiursa, but no Ash and no Misty. He had asked Wingull a moment or two ago what she had seen, and the answer had been about the same, except for her spotting of two Stantler that Noctowl hadn't seen because he was watching the cluster of Venonat running around for no apparent reason. Noctowl was anxious about the two humans, though he knew they could probably take care of themselves, because they had been gone so long. Noctowl had a feeling that Ash might need him, but he didn't say anything about it to Wingull. She would probably say one of her scathing remarks about how he had begged Ash to let him travel with the group again, a lot like the way Misty would say something scathing to Ash, though she was really just playing with him.

"Anything?" He called out hopefully to Wingull. Flapping her paper-thin wings to steer herself closer to Noctowl, she shook her head, adding a loud call of annoyed distress.

Noctowl let the thermal he was riding on take him in a spiral path in the sky. The forest far below was an ever-repeating pattern of unbroken green. Wingull took the thermal below him and they continued on, the sun's rays growing hotter. After a while, Noctowl began to get anxious for a different reason. They had lost sight of the grounded search party a long time ago, but Noctowl was sure that he and the blue-and-white bird were flying too far away from the area that they were searching in. They might get lost, even high up the way they were now, and the last thing the group needed was for more of the members to be missing. However, Noctowl also considered, the reason that the group couldn't find Ash and Misty was that the two trainers were so far away from the group, that they were basically headed in opposite directions, therefore the only way to find them would be from the sky.

Wingull flapped her wings harder, escaping her thermal and gliding up beside Noctowl. He saw that she was about to speak, when suddenly, Noctowl spotted an interesting area of the forest far below. Wingull stilled her beak immediately at Noctowl's fierce twitch of his head. She gave a hard stare at the area the Noctowl was examining, but her black eyes couldn't see as well from the height they were flying at. Noctowl focused his eyes in hard at the small clearing he had sighted, but his gaze wasn't yet strong enough for what he wanted to see. Dipping a bit lower down and continuing to spiral, Wingull followed the concentrating Noctowl as he focused harder by using one of his attacks. Noctowl's eyes glowed red as he held onto his Foresight attack, the technique that helped him identify an unknown opponent and made a Ghost- type vulnerable to Normal- and Fighting- type attacks and unable to disappear. Like a camera lens, his eyes zoomed in to three times the normal sight range. What he identified gave him such a shock that he hooted in surprise.

"Noctowl! What is it?" Wingull quickly chirped.

"It's Meowth… **the** Meowth! That cat from Team Rocket's down there, sitting in that clearing, all by himself."

Wingull shared the owl's surprise. "What's he doing by himself? Where's that Jesse and James, or where's Wobbuffet, Dustox, Cacnea, and Seviper?"

"I don't know. It's just him. He's sitting right there in the middle of the clearing, all by himself. He's sitting next to… some hole in the ground or something. "

Wingull's black eyes narrowed horizontally in suspicion as the two birds glanced at each other. "Sound's fishy to me..." After a pause, she added, "Magikarp-fishy… well, maybe Feebas-fish-"

Noctowl cut her off before she could continue her oceanic-rooted ramble, and muttered, "Do you think that maybe Team Rocket could have dug that hole?"

She gave an extra flap of her wings in a shrug. "Does it look very deep?"

"I can't tell. It could be."

"I bet that if Meowth is sitting by the edge, that those two humans are probably in that hole." Eyes suddenly wide, she added, "What if Team Rocket has captured our Ash and Misty and has them in that hole! Let's go get 'em!" Her claws clutched the air fiercely in a rebellious manner. With a light tap of his wing, Noctowl stayed her from plunging down to the Earth and attacking the vulnerable furball that could have helped harm her master.

"We need to go find the search party and bring them here. Besides we don't know for certain that Ash and Misty are there," Noctowl reasoned, though he was quite positive they must be, and both birds knew it.

"Oh, come on, Nocty! Me and you can take 'em on! One Water Gun and one Confusion, then BOOM!" Her words were completely serious, though her tone was playful as she swooped above him and gave a talon-swipe at Noctowl's V-shaped plume, ruffling it. She dipped around, going in her quick rotations and revolving around Noctowl as he rode the thermal, like the Earth around the Sun.

Noctowl rolled his eyes, his Foresight long since evaporated, but her teasing didn't truly bother him. "It's not that we probably couldn't beat them in battle, but what if Ash and Misty are hurt? They would need Brock's medical skills. Let's go back and get the group. They need to know what we've found, you know." Wingull leveled off next to Noctowl and they flapped their wings hard, escaping the thermal and finding another one headed back the way they had come. Noctowl, who was only able to give the sun the briefest of glances, noted their angle to the sun so that they would be able to find their way back using the angle, like an astrolabe. As Wingull pulled ahead of Noctowl, he called up to her, "…And don't call me Nocty!"

Wingull gave off a throaty, purring giggle, and the two birds, the owl and the seagull, veered off into the sky to find the search party on the ground, who had passed the meadow, where Meowth was waiting next to the hole, quite a while ago.

**  
TO BE CONTINUED…**

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If I possibly have the time, between getting ready for the holidays and finishing schoolwork up, I will try to have Chapter Nine posted before Christmas, as a gift to everyone. But that is not a promise, okay?! There's an extremely high possibility that it won't! If I don't get to post again before that, I will try before New Year's. If I don't get it then, well, it's definitely not gonna be two months this time. I'm back on a roll! Happy holidays, everybody! 

(One more thing: does anyone know a good website where I could easily make a free website? I want to make a site for this story, which would have a lot of cool info that I can't put in these pages. Also, I'd like to put in links so I can have multiple pages and I'd like to post the many pictures that I have drawn for this story, and the cover to the book, too. If you know a website that is easy to use and can let me do all of these things, could you please suggest it with your review of this chap? I am most appreciative. Thanks!)

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 8's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter. :)


	9. Share With Me Your Secrets Deep Inside

Hee, hee! I did it, didn't I? I said I'd get this chappie done and posted near at least New Years', and I did! To say the truth, I had this chapter done before Christmas, but the story of this chapter is a long story, which, in fact, I'm going to probably tell about on my website when I get it ready! In regards to the website, I have found a place where I can make one (thanks a bunch to everyone who gave me websites I could check out) and I am currently setting it up. It might be a while before it's ready, though, because I have a lot of stuff to post on it (and I've never made a website before). Congratulations to The girl who flamed, gladdecease, bluejolteon459, P.R. Dragonite, KasumiSatoshi, Funkyafroman, chipsyketchum, Uppa, Halfling Rogue, J.C. the Wabbit, and Sparklewolf, for getting Chapter Eight's title right. The line "…big trouble's gonna follow you…" is from the song _Double Trouble (Team Rocket)_ (some of you called it _Team Rocket's Rockin'_, which makes sense also, so I counted those right, too) from the Pokémon: 2 B A Master CD. Anyway, this chapter was quite enjoyable to write…mwahhhh! …No, don't get me wrong! I really love this chapter… hee hee… you'll see… how about going ahead and reading it, huh? …Enjoy, 'cause this is your Happy New Years' Present! (and what a present it is…)

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**CHAPTER 9: …Share With Me Your Secrets Deep Inside…**

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Ash's soul flew forlornly over the cavern floor, his head down, peering at the ice far underneath him. There was no reflection of him at all in the milky surface, for what could ever reflect the image of something invisible? _Will I ever see another reflection of myself again?_ He glanced over at the ghostly Misty, who was flying along beside him, and staring down at the ice grimly, too. _Will she ever see her reflection again?_

The possibility seemed almost impossible at present. Ash hated to be pessimistic, but from the way everything was going now, the end result of whatever was going to happen to him and Misty didn't feel like it was going to turn out the way things had always turned out: happy. From saving Ferina from being destroyed by Groudon, to saving Alto Mare from destruction, to saving Celebi from destroying himself and a Johtoian forest, to saving Greenfield from being crystallized over, to saving the world from the imbalance of power between the legendary birds, nothing had ever looked so impossible or bleak. Everything, though at one point being dire, had always ended in a decent-enough way, even though some things had ended a bit sad, such as Latios giving up his spirit to stop the tsunami, and his friend Sammy going back to his own world in the past (Ash still wondered sometimes what had ever become of Sammy). Now, it seemed to Ash that the one thing he couldn't seem to be able to save was his and Misty's lives.

Misty glanced over at Ash as she realized that they were coming close to the cavern with the million-color crystalfall. _He looks so… weary… and miserable._ Misty wanted to float over to him and wrap her arms around him in a tight and loving hug, to stop him from looking so depressed, even though she felt the same way herself. She felt that she knew (and she truly did know) what was bothering Ash. _He wishes that he could save us, I just know it._ Misty wished that he could save them, too, of course, but everything was looking so desolate that it seemed unfeasible.

_Sableye tried to stop Haunter from getting to us before we ever became spirits, then Ash tried to make Haunter send us back, and nothing has worked. What else can we do? We tried to get Team Rocket to help us out, but they were too scared of Haunter and too stunned seeing Ash and I not moving to do anything. They were trying to get away so fast and furiously that they're probably almost out of all of these caverns by now. It seems the last hope would be for Sableye to battle Haunter again, or for Brock and Max and May to find us all of the way down here and battle Haunter with all of our Pokémon. We couldn't ask Sableye to do any more for us than he already has, almost being killed himself … _

_…That leaves Brock and the others to finding us and battling for us in far less than an hour, and maybe only a few minutes… and after all, what are the chances?_ At that moment, Ash and Misty had turned into the cavern of the colored crystals, and Misty gazed up at them, not in awe anymore, but in hopelessness. _One in a million?_

"Maybe… we should rest here," Ash muttered suddenly, floating to a stop. Misty paused beside him. She knew that he meant that his mind was tired with worry, not that he was tired himself. Ghosts like themselves didn't need to rest, for they didn't need to regain energy because they didn't even need energy. Ghosts like them were simply there, but only just barely. Misty nodded. Their original semi-formulated plan for leaving the last cavern was to head towards the very first cavern again, the one above where they had found Team Rocket, to see if the rest of their group had, by some unforeseen chance, fallen into the hole as well. No pun intended, but their spirits seemed to be falling with every inch of ice that they flew over, and the chance did indeed seem to be one in a million.

"We can go rest up there," Misty half-heartedly suggested, pointing up at the top of the crystalfall, where there was a few feet of horizontal crystals before it curved down into its graceful arc. Ash nodded and they started their ascending hover. Both were silent in their forlorn thoughts, staring at the rubies and oranges and saffrons and emeralds and sapphires and violets as they whisked to the top of the crystalline structure. When they finally reached the top of the crystalfall, they saw that where the crystals stuck out from the wall, there was no hole to show where they came from. It was an extremely mysterious and unexplainable sight, too complex to put into words. Ash, however, was in no mood to ponder the strangeness of it, and neither was Misty. _We'll probably have plenty of time to wonder about it in the future…_

Ash cautiously seated himself down where the multihued crystals were about to begin their descent. It would have, perhaps, been a bit uncomfortable if he had done the same thing when he was in his body, but he couldn't feel much of the hardness of it as a soul. Misty, hoping that the invitation that she had received from Ash the night before wasn't needed for what she was about to do, sat down close next to him, only a few inches away from him, to Ash's left. She placed her elbows on her knees, and her chin in her hands, and stared blankly out at the cavern around them. Ash had been staring out at the cavern, too, but now turned his eyes to the oblivious Misty.

Though it had only been a bit more than an hour from when he and Misty had first found the beautiful crystalfall, to Ash, it seemed like ages. So many things had happened between then and now that it was still hard to comprehend. The cavern, so completely apart from everything above it at the surface of the earth, was like a world of its own, with its own bending and breaking of the indissoluble rules of time. Ash began to wish very hard, with all of his might, that they had turned back after they had found the crystalfall, or even before that. _But it's like Misty said last night. This is one of those things where it's no good wishing for anything without Jirachi or an Unown around. …Man, Sammy, this would have been the perfect time for you and Celebi to show up. Could Celebi even go back in time in such a small amount of time as an hour? Or would Celebi have taken us back to last night, before Misty and I fell down the hole?_

"Ash," Misty suddenly spoke tonelessly, still staring blankly at the silver wall opposite from where they were.

"…Yeah, Mist?"

She was very quiet and still a moment before she spoke again, quieter and more emotional than before. "…What will happen to Togepi?" She finally glanced over at Ash, saw his puzzled face, and continued. "I mean, what will become of Togepi… if I'm not there anymore? What if… really, what if… we don't make it? What's going to happen to her without me? She needs me. She's… she's my little baby."

There was such a deep, mother-like sorrow in her voice and in the eyes that were now staring intently into his own that Ash felt his heart breaking in two. "Misty…" he whispered, and that was all he could say for a moment, until he was able to mutter, "I… I know she'd be taken care of. I mean, Pikachu would take care of her, and all of the others would, too. And they'd keep her safe, Mist." When he mentioned the electric Pokémon that he was so close to himself, Ash felt that the pieces of his heart that had broken apart were breaking in two again.

"…And Ash, what about our other Pokémon? Who would take care of them? Who would take care of Pikachu?"

"Max," Ash muttered solemnly but immediately, "Max would take care of Pikachu, because Pikachu would be a good Pokémon for him. I'd want Max to have him, anyway, if I couldn't. And our other Pokémon would probably go to live back in Pallet with Professor Oak and Tracey, or your Pokémon might go back to your sisters in Cerulean. And I guess that Brock would take care of Togepi… or maybe May."

"Why May?" Misty suddenly blurted out forcefully. A pause ensued, and Ash blinked, a bit surprised at her outburst.

"Well, I mean, May's a girl like you are, so she'd be kind of like a foster mother, I guess, and May likes cute Pokémon, you know, with her Torchic and all." Ash shrugged, still a bit bewildered. Misty had a hard time masking her vividly jealous emotions. _Oh, so he knows that May is a girl, huh? Well, that's just nice, isn't it? And… wait… 'May's a girl… like you', is what he said… he really recognizes that I'm a girl? …Well, that's a start, at least…_

"Brock," Misty firmly replied, in answer to who would take care of Togepi if everything didn't turn out right. Ash nodded sagely, believing that he understood why Misty was against May being Togepi's guardian. _She probably believes that May isn't responsible enough to care for such a delicate baby Pokémon. _

Misty turned to stare back out at the cavern, her mind drifting to hateful thoughts at May, but then increasingly-stronger amorous thoughts of the boy sitting next to her, it being the first time since her soul was taken out of her body that she had really nothing else to think about but Ash himself. Ash copied her movements, his elbows on his knees and his hands propping up his chin, except he didn't look out at the silvery walls as she was. He set his gaze on Misty.

As Misty had nothing to think about except Ash, now that their situation was gloomier than any Gloom, Ash had nothing to think about except Misty. All thoughts of ghosts and Haunter and dieing banished from his mind for a moment, Ash's mind slipped back into the almost-carefree thoughts of her that he had had in the caverns above, and before even that.

_I wonder what Mist's thinking about right now… _Suddenly, seeing her deep in thought, Ash remembered all of the concerns that he had had about Misty the night before, which had all started right before the Brace Hide-And-Seek game. He had noticed that she was worried about something, and try as he might, he had never been able to wrestle it out of her. _I really wonder what it is… or was. All morning, she hasn't had that weird worried look that she had last night. Well, I guess both of us have been too anxious about Haunter and everything to think about any other problems, but even before we found that last cavern, she didn't seem so anxious. Maybe… I should ask again. _After peering a bit deeper into Misty's profile face, though, Ash decided not to ask. She would surely tell him when she was ready to do so, for she certainly couldn't go forever without telling anyone, and Ash felt that he must respect her unvoiced wishes.

Ash glanced out to where Misty was staring at the wall, but he, for some reason, was now having a hard time keeping his eyes away from the ghostly girl. Suddenly, staring again at the pale blue Misty, with her hair down and Ash's vest around her shoulders, Ash remembered the pledge that he had made in conjunction with Misty's unknown worries. _…I'd almost forgotten that I was going to try to make Misty be more comfortable with me._ Ash, who hadn't noticed it before, realized how close that Misty was sitting next to him now, only inches away to his left._ It kind of seems that Misty has grown more comfortable being around me anyway. I mean, she's sitting real close, and she's let me hold her hand to comfort her. She slept next to me on the rock last night and she's hugged me and… she's being… nicer._

_Misty's been a lot nicer… she's actually opened up more to me, even though she hasn't told me what was bothering her. She hasn't yelled at me or hit me or gotten mad at me since, I dunno, yesterday. That must be a world record. I doubt that Brock would believe it. Well, she did poke a bit of fun at me because my stomach growled this morning, but she was just being friendly and playful, like we are when we argue sometimes. I'm glad, though, because she's a lot of fun to be with when me and her are like that, knowing that we're really not trying to hurt each other._

Though Ash was unfortunately known to sometimes be quite thoughtless, in Pokémon battles and otherwise, now that his mind was set on Misty, thoughts kept pouring into his brain without rhyme or reason, like opening up a floodgate. Now, he couldn't stop thinking, even if he tried. He sat up straighter, and reflected even more.

_I know for sure that Misty doesn't really want to hurt me, even though she sometimes acts like it. After all, why would she stand up for me all of the times that she has before, against Team Rocket, or Haunter just now, or why would she even come back to travel with me in Hoenn if she wanted me to be hurt? She doesn't, obviously… but then why has she actually hit me or yelled at me before?_

Somehow, his questioning thoughts made him think of Sableye. When they had left Sableye before returning to the crystalfall just now, Sableye had looked extremely sad and grief-stricken, but when Haunter had been present, Sableye's voice was thickly lined with hatred and anger. Ash began to wonder if Sableye was actually more heartbroken than enraged about the whole separation-from-bodies thing, for when anyone is against something as evil as Haunter, strength is important, and tears are never an indicator of strength to villainous opponents.

_…Is it… is it a defense mechanism? Pretending that you're angry instead of sad, so that you aren't hurt as much? …That must be what is happening with Sableye… and is it happening with Misty, too? That would explain everything! Misty can have a quick temper by nature, like she has sometimes with Psyduck, so anger would be the perfect cover up if she was hurt about anything. …Misty's not really that tough… Misty is really just sensitive and playful and caring. She's compassionate about Water Pokémon, she's great as Togepi's adopted mother, and she's my best friend. …But if she's my best friend, and she's pretending to be really tough with me so that she isn't hurt, then what is she afraid that I am going to do to her?_

If Misty had glanced over at Ash at that moment, she would have blushed to see the quizzical and penetrating look that Ash was giving her, but she didn't. She probably would have thought that Ash knew that she was thinking obsessive thoughts about him. However, Ash was simply confused, having no answer to his last question, and wishing, strangely desperately, that he could understand her more. _Ah, Mist. You're so complex… You're like a puzzle… that I want to understand…_

At that moment, Misty gave a small sigh, and her eyes drifted from the wall down to the vibrant, multicolored crystals, shining brightly underneath them. Ash's eyes followed the direction that hers had went, and gazed almost, but not quite, contentedly at the tiny glow of the brilliant hues. _…It's like a big stained-glass window from church, back home in Kanto… it's even kind of reminds me of Ho-oh when I saw him those two times…_ _I… I wonder what all of these crystals are made of… Are they glass… or ice… or something else? …Maybe… if they weren't so bright and colorful I might be able to tell…_

Ash glanced back up at Misty, who still had her eyes fixed on the crystals below them. She was calm, but without one specific emotion in her face. Then, a deep thought came to him, as one had come to him when he had considered Misty's and Sableye's likeness, except this one was far deeper than even that. This thought was as deep as the caverns that Ash and Misty had accidentally discovered.

_…People and Pokémon are like that, too… What are they made of? What makes all of us the people, or Pokémon, that we are? What makes me me? What makes Pikachu himself? What makes Brock who he is, or Max who he is, or May who she is? …What makes Sableye be the way he is? …What …what makes Haunter… be the way… that he is? _

Ash glanced down at the crystals in amazement, in amazement not at the colors, but in amazement at the thoughts he was having. _It's not what we're made of, or what we are, but who we are, our…our… soul. …We're all like the crystals in that way… we don't know what makes us the way that we are, just like I can't know what the crystals are made of… we just have to accept that we are who we are, and that everyone else is who they are… the crystals aren't glass or ice, because that's just what they are made of, not what they are… The crystals are color. The crystals are rainbows. The crystals are red and orange and yellow and green and blue and purple and brown and black and white and everything like that. The crystals are color. That's who they are, if you can say it like that; their souls._

_Who is Misty, then? Not 'what is she'. …Who?_

His eyes automatically shifted back to Misty, absolutely and completely clueless as to all that was going on in the brain of the boy that she so dearly loved for who he was.

It was then that, in the puzzle that Misty was to Ash in his mind, the second-to-last piece had fitted itself into place.

The sight of the soul of Misty had suddenly caused a warm, then an even stronger burning sensation in the pit of his stomach to flare up. Ash was so dazed from his profound thoughts that it took him a second to realize what had happened. _…That's weird._ Swiftly, Ash realized that the feeling in his stomach was the same one that he had experienced before, that had plagued him several times before, when they were in their bodies in the cavern. After a moment, Ash realized that this was very unnatural. _Wait a minute. That weird warmness is a physical thing, right? …Then I shouldn't have felt that because I'm not in my body. …It's just like being hungry or cold or in pain. I can't feel pain from where Haunter attacked me because I'm not in my body, and I can't feel how cold it is in this cavern because my soul can't feel temperature, and I know that I must certainly be starved after all of the time that has passed since I last ate, but I don't feel hunger in my stomach. The only feeling in my stomach is that… burning feeling._

Ash remembered that before, he had concluded that the sensation had something to do with Misty, but he hadn't figured out what exactly it meant. Now, Ash was a hundred percent positive that the feeling was about Misty, and it was a bit of a surprise to Ash when he realized another thing: this last sensation was at least twice, or three times, stronger than the others had been.

_Why? What is this? I remember feeling this even before the caverns… _After Misty had given Ash the russet crystal that matched his eyes to absolute perfection, Ash had felt the sensation and he remembered, very specifically, one moment that the sensation had gripped him a long time before, but he had been unable to remember that moment before it had left him. The moment had just come back to Ash, and this time, hot on a roll of this complex thought process that had immersed his mind, he didn't let the moment escape from him again.

Lavender Town, Kanto.

Pokémon Tower.

In Ash's memory of the moment, he was watching, high from the rafters of a ceiling, the scene that was below him. He was a spirit, a soul, as he was now. Pikachu, also a ghost, was floating next to him, along with a Gengar, a Gastly, and a (perfectly normal) Haunter. Far below them lie Ash and Pikachu's bodies, flat on their backs, motionless, just as his and Misty's bodies were lying in the last cavern now. Brock and Misty were kneeled on the floor beside them, calling to them, begging them to wake up. Ash could hear Misty's voice, much higher and stressed than normal, and could hear her words. _"Ash! Open your eyes! Please, Ash!"_

_"Huh…"_ Ash had muttered, slightly perplexed at Misty's tone. _"…I guess it's time to go back, Pikachu."_ Ash remembered the whooshing feeling he had experienced, as the violet Haunter had undoubtedly been sending them back to their bodies. All had been dark for a moment, until he had hesitantly tried to open his eyes. They had flickered for a moment before he could open them completely, but after they were open, he had tilted his head a bit to the right to look at Misty. Her head had been down, and he hadn't been able to see her eyes. _"Hi, Misty."_

There had been great surprise in her face, not only when he had finally waken up, but when the first words out of his mouth had been to her. _"You're alive!"_ she had breathed, and the look on her face had, for a split second, been tremendously tender and caring. It was then that the warm rush deep in his stomach had made its appearance and had left an impression on Ash that had lasted for more than a score of months and thousands of miles of journey and adventure. However, he had not given the sensation any thought at the time, being too busy thinking about his coming gym battle with Sabrina and hoping that the Haunter would battle for him, even though Ash had spotted, out of the corner of his eye, Misty, the skin above her cheeks pink, wiping her blurry eyes with the back of her arm.

Ash, letting the vivid memory fade from his mind, felt that the warm sensation was not yet gone from his stomach. It was still there, burning stronger than ever. He couldn't tear his eyes away from Misty now, not even if Lance the Dragon Master had come to him at that exact moment and proclaimed Ash the greatest Pokémon Master of the entire world.

His brain fell into a thought-silence, where he wasn't thinking at all, where his brain was just white. His sight, and the sight of Misty, still with her head in her hands, overpowered all of his other senses. He didn't move, or blink, or say a word. He didn't breath, either, so it was a fair good thing that he was a spirit at the moment that didn't need air, or he might have passed out from lack of oxygen. It was at least thirty seconds before Ash's brain kicked back into motion.

_…She's beautiful._

When she had taken her hair down to cover her bare neck so that it wouldn't get cold, Ash had thought the word, 'pretty'. However, in no form or fashion could Ash now describe Misty as just 'pretty'. 'Pretty' was a word for describing flowers. 'Pretty' was a word for describing Bellossom or Vulpix or Roselia or Gardevoir, not Misty. Ash felt that if someone put a Milotic, considered the most beautiful Pokémon in the world, up against Misty in a contest of beautifulness, the Milotic couldn't have even won the 'pretty' prize. Misty was the most beautiful, hands down.

In his mind, Ash could see Misty in many of the times before that he had thought that she was pretty, but now, most certainly, he should have thought of her as, pardon the expression, 'drop-dead' beautiful. Ash could see Misty in her magician's assistant outfit, a white leotard, white shoulder-length gloves, and her Goldeen-patterned silk skirt, which she had worn only once at a festival because Pikachu was in his blue suit and red bow tie. He could see Misty in her mermaid costume, with the long silky tail, that she had worn helping her sisters produce an underwater ballet at the Cerulean City gym. Most of all, Ash could clearly see Misty in her outfit that she had worn for the dance party at Maiden's Peak: her pink kimono with the red sash, printed with red Golden and blue bubbles, with her blue paper fan… and her hair down around her face, as it was now. It had been the first time that Ash had seen Misty's orange hair out of its sideways ponytail. She didn't even need beautiful clothes to look beautiful, though, for Ash thought she was as beautiful as ever right now.

_She's so beautiful. How could I not have noticed? _Any girl that Ash had ever seen in his life was, though he didn't want to think insultingly, very ugly compared to Misty. Not Kasey, not Duplica, not Bianca, not Melody, not any girl that Brock had ever drooled over in his life… and not May, either, could ever beat Misty. For a brief second, Ash even went so far as to wonder why Brock himself had never drooled over Misty, seeing as Misty was so beautiful and all, but then Ash dismissed it. _Obviously, Brock doesn't know what beautiful is… or else he hasn't realized how beautiful Misty is yet, given that I just realized it myself._ It didn't occur to Ash that someone could say that Misty wasn't beautiful, or didn't think it to the extreme that he had fallen into.

Any more thought of how beautiful Misty was were suddenly canceled when the warmth in the pit of Ash's stomach grew into a crescendo. He blinked, even glancing down at his own stomach, but quickly reverting his eyes back to Misty. It was an emotion, he realized then. The sensation wasn't a physical-feeling, which is why Ash could still feel it. The feeling was an emotion, a mind-feeling, that had to do with Misty, and was so strong that it had become a kind of physical-feeling. _But what IS it? What does this…feeling mean, in association with Mist?_

All the time that Ash had been thinking, Misty had been completely oblivious of his repeated stares at her and the mixed emotions that sprouted onto his face when he thought of some new revelation. She was thinking rather infatuated thoughts and pining thoughts of him all the while. All the time that Ash had been thinking, the thoughts in his brain had mostly spilled out in a rhythm, like the cogs in the clockwork of a watch. Then, as his wonderings about the warm, sensational emotion grew, the thoughts, new and very radical thoughts, began to spill out faster and faster and faster, like the progression of a locomotive as it picks up steam and begins to speed up to a point where it can't stop even if someone is tied down to the rail a mile away. Soon, thoughts began to spill in such a fast rate that they were merely flashes of light in his mind, not even words or sentences, and were immediately replaced by new thoughts.

The first radical thought was, not of Misty, but of Brock, and Brock's very bizarre fascination and obsession with 'pretty girls'. _Why does Brock think all of those girls are so pretty? _FLASH. _Why does Brock find 'pretty girls' so fascinating?_ FLASH. _How can anyone find someone fascinating if they don't know them?_ FLASH. _Why would you say that anyone is pretty if you don't know them?_ FLASH. _Why would you say that anyone is beautiful, or sensitive or playful or caring, if you don't know them?_ New radical thought streams sprouted off of this one, leading to random things that didn't always seem to follow the other thoughts logically and things that Ash had barely, if ever, thought about before.

FLASH. _Why did Misty like that gym leader, Danny, when we were on Naval Island in the Orange Archipelago? Just because he said that she was pretty? Is that any reason to say that I'm 'just a kid'? Is that any reason to offer your blanket to him? Is that any reason to want to root for him instead of me during the ice sled race down that mountain?_

FLASH. _Why was I so jealous of him?_

FLASH. _Why did that gym leader guy, Rudy, on Trovita Island, seem to like you so much? Just because you saved his sister? Why did you accept flowers from him? Why did you go to dinner with him? What did he say to you? What did he mean when he said that I'd 'understand someday'? What was that? Why did his sister think you should cheer for him? You were traveling with me!_

FLASH. _Why was I so jealous of him?_

FLASH. _Why did that girl at the Johto League, Macy, seem to make you so mad? Was it because she loved Fire- Types? Was it because she was trying to get me to go on a… date with her? Why would you care about that anyway? _

FLASH. _Were you jealous of her?_

FLASH. _Why did you get so surprise when Latias, well, kissed me on the cheek when she was in Bianca's form? Were you mad? Did you think that it was Bianca? Do you still think that it was Bianca? Why were you so mad when Melody kissed me on the cheek on Shamouti Island? It was surprising, I'll tell you that, but did you think that I was glad she did? Why were you so mad when we were at the Chosen One feast? Why didn't you come with me when I was going to go get the three spheres? Were you mad at me… or at Melody?_

FLASH. _Were you jealous of them?_

FLASH. _Why do seem to hate May so much? May never did anything to you, did she? What reason do you have to hate her? Her younger brother is your friend, so why isn't she? If you don't hate Max, or even Brock or Tracey, then why do you hate May? Is it because she's another girl? Why does that have to do with anything? Is it because she traveled with me for a little while with no one else, and you didn't? We've traveled, just me and you, together before, through Viridian Forest before we met Brock, and after we left Brock with Professor Ivy and before we met Tracey, didn't we? Why do you hate May?_

FLASH. …_Are you jealous of her?_

A new succession of thought occurred, and it was faster than if the locomotive had gone downhill at full speed, coal bin blazing and whistle at full blast. The flashes grew into a series of wicked fast white strobe lights in a pitch black room.

FLASH.

_Why did Danny say that you and I must be really close? _

FLASH.

_Why did that Nurse Joy in Vermilion City say that you and I must be really close?_

FLASH.

_Why did Tracey say that we were like Emily and Ralph, with the Nidorans?_

FLASH.

_What exactly is it meant by, 'you hurt the ones you-'_

FLASH.

_You got your bike back, so why did you want to travel with me again?_

FLASH.

_Are you just my best friend?_

FLASH.

_Who is Misty?_

Then, it all stopped. The locomotive had run into a brick-and-concrete wall that was as thick as ten Wailords set head-to-tail would be long. …_I know who Misty is. It's like I thought before, but different. She's sensitive and playful and caring, but that's not just what she is. It's who she is. Who she is is sensitive to others, like when she was worrying over Sableye. Who she is is playful, but only when she feels that she can't be hurt inside and when she feels safe, because another part of who she is is shyness, no, insecurity, because she's not always sure that someone will back her up no matter what. Who she is is caring, when she was worrying over Togepi, or when she was telling me not to jump off the cliff edge in the third cavern. Who she is is brave, when she confronted Haunter, stubborn, because she has had to work to escape the 'girly' influence of her sisters, loyal, because she always stayed with me until she was basically commanded to leave, and strong, to not give up and cry even through all of the bad things that have happened to us in this past hour or so. Who she is is beautiful… not just on the outside, but so much so on the inside, because of, not what, but who she is. _

_And I like who she is. I like her… soul. _Ash felt a bit of a wave of contentment fall over him, and at the same time, the warm emotion swell to the strongest that it had ever been. Ash did like who she was. In fact, Ash liked who Misty was a whole lot. He liked who she was so much that he felt that he-

When Ash had gotten into this whole thought process, he could never have imagined, with all of the amazing imagination-like things that he had factually seen in his travels, that he would have thought something like this.

The final puzzle piece had clicked.

He loved her.

Ash loved Misty.

Before they had found the cavern, Ash had inwardly divided his journey into Before Hoenn and During Hoenn (BH and DH, obviously). Afterwards, after Ash's last revelation, he would eventually, to himself of course, refer to all time that occurred in his life as Before Misty and During Misty (BM and DM), not referring to when he met Misty, but in accordance to when he finally realized that he, Ash Ketchum, loved Misty Waterflower with all of his heart and (yes, ironically enough) all of his soul.

If Ash had been in his body, and the last time he had stopped breathing hadn't killed him, this time surely would have finished him off. As soon as the thought was formed, Ash knew immediately that this was no silly crush, like the ones that Brock had all of the time. This was love, real and true, and even though he was still very, very much in his youth, the love he was feeling felt very permanent. The love he had found that he had for Misty was also very shocking to say the least, perhaps, just perhaps, even more shocking than the Thunderbolt that Pikachu had used on Team Rocket (and him and Misty and her bike) on the day that Misty had returned to the group. After all, it's not every day that one realizes that their best friend had actually been more than a best friend to them the entire time that they knew the person, and it's not every day that someone who is like Ash realizes it, either.

_I… I can't believe it. I… I… I love her. I love Misty. I …I love her so much… I… this is a dream…_

It made perfect sense, though. All of the times that people they met had said things about he and Misty being 'together' had to have come from somewhere and had to have a factual basis, and they obviously must have known how Ash felt for Misty, even though he hadn't known it. Ash, though stunned for a moment, warmed up to the idea of loving Misty so much and so quickly that he gasped a trivial breath. A smile slowly lit up his face, and his eyes, gazing happily at Misty, began to glisten in excitement and exhilaration. He loved this, this feeling of… romantic love that he had found, and he was very glad that he felt it for Misty, too, and not someone else.

Strange as it was, the object of his newfound affection never felt the atmospheric change that had occurred. Misty stared carelessly at the crystals. She was lost in thought, as Ash had been a moment ago, though it was not as deep. In fact, Misty's thoughts, though they started rather amorously, had become almost bleak. _Oh, Ash. What am I going to do? We seem so much closer now than we were before we came to these caverns. If we ever do get back in our bodies, then what will happen? If we ever get back to the rest of the group, what would you do if… if… May started fussing over you or something? Would you like it? Would you like her? Do you like her? Do you love her? Oh, Ash, do you love me? Oh, how can you? You don't think like that! You'd never think deep enough to think that, would you? …Would you? Oh, I wish that I knew how you felt about me! …Oh, this is getting depressing… I wish I could tell you how I feel… oh, Misty, that's ridiculous. You wish that same thing at least… twenty times a day! Will this ever change? …Ever?_

Ash gazed smittenly at Misty with an unconsciously quirky grin on his face, his eyes narrowed as though he was drunk. _Oh, Mist, I love you so much! I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you…_ Ash continued to think the same thing over and over until it had buried deeply in his mind. The thought had become a part of him, burned and etched into his very being. Then, one final thought, to top everything off, occurred to him. _I gotta tell her. _

He was suddenly immersed in a tidal wave of wondering that so many who have loved before have gone though: searching for the right words to say in order to explain the deep emotion that connects the two people together, at least, in one of the two hearts. Though most have been nervous in their hunt for words, Ash was simply wound up and eager. He began to form sentences in his mind, and when one didn't sound right, he tried something a bit different if it was just okay, or something completely different if it was messed up. In a moment or two, he had thought up at least twenty different things when he finally decided on one that, at least in his mind, sounded right. He quickly repeated the words in his mind a few times so that they would hopefully come out of his mouth in second nature. He wasn't sure that his choice was incredibly romantic or anything, but he felt that it got across what he wanted to say so dearly (he had yet to realize that he was dealing in romantic things with a self-proclaimed romantic).

The question to Ash had been how to say how he felt about Misty. Strangely enough, he had never considered the question that had always plagued Misty: when. _Oh, I can't stand this much longer! Oh, I have to tell her now, I have to! Okay, do I know what I am going to say? …Uh… uh… yeah, I got it. Okay! I gotta tell her! Oh, how can people bear waiting to tell someone how they feel when they realize it, if the person they love is far away? How could anyone wait?! How could anyone keep something like this inside for a long time?! Oh, that would be torture! I gotta tell her! Now!_

Misty, still sunk in contemplation, was completely taken by surprise when she heard her name being whispered. She jerked and sat up quickly, glancing at Ash with renewed amazement at how close she had sat next to him. There was something in his eyes, some sparkle that made her consciously wonder what it was that Ash wanted, and the smile that was obviously threatening to come to his lips made her wonder more. "Ash?" she asked quickly.

He opened his mouth to speak, but paused, and his eyes flickered to his right, back to where the crystals were laying horizontally. After a quick mind deliberation, the ghostly Ash stood up and reached a hand down to Misty. Somewhat hesitantly, she took his hand and he helped her up to her feet. Ash quickly walked up higher, leading Misty to stand on the horizontal crystals, still holding her hand in his. When they were standing on 'level ground', so to speak, Ash guided Misty around so that she was standing straight across from him. He dropped her hand, and gazed down at the crystals at his feet to regather his thoughts. Misty watched him uncertainly. She couldn't see his face or tell what emotion he was feeling, and the strange swiftness of the action that had occurred, after the very long thoughtful period, was a bit nerve-racking. However, when Ash looked back up at her, Misty saw an unfamiliar glisten in his eyes that immediately informed her that whatever Ash was about to do or say would be very important, maybe much more important than anything that he had ever said before in his life.

For perhaps one of the first times in their lives, it was Ash that was the one of the two that was thinking about love and Misty was the one that was completely clueless as to what the other was thinking about.

"Misty," Ash began, looking her straight into the eyes, trying to send to her the loving message that he was about to say before he could say it. It was then that Ash realized that he had absolutely and completely forgotten the elaborate sentence that he was going to say. His mind suddenly went blank, like an erased chalkboard, and he froze. Ash couldn't even think enough to wonder if this had ever happened to anyone else when they were about to say how they loved someone. Misty saw immediately that Ash had forgotten what he was about to say. Fighting the impulse to ask what was wrong, given that this must be very important, Misty waited patiently, hoping that Ash would catch the calmly-waiting look on her face and not get nervous because his first attempt at talking had failed. It was a good thing that Misty hadn't interrupted, or it would have certainly messed Ash up even more. _Darn, _Ash thought, _I'll have to improvise._ Battling strategies he could improvise; words, he couldn't, not without them turning out wrong. Ash tried to stay optimistic.

"Misty," Ash began again, and gave a quick deep breath, which was unnecessary for oxygen consumption. She waited intently. "I… I just w-wanted to say… well, I wanted to t-tell you that I, uh… what I mean is that I… well, I brought you up here, because I…" He paused, breathed deeper to calm himself, and continued. "Misty, I brought you up here because I… I wanted to tell you something really important." Misty nodded her head slightly. Ash paused, then bravely continued on. "It's really important, and I wanted you to know… now… even though there have been a lot of bad things that have happened, and, well, are still happening, I guess. …It's not a bad thing, in case you're wondering." Misty, a small grin flitting across her face at his stammering, nodded again. Ash gulped. Why was this so hard to do?

"Anyway, what I wanted to tell you is…" _I need an… introduction to my… speech, or whatever. …Darn…_ "Well, first… I want to thank you for… saving me from Haunter, well, I mean, sticking up for me against him. …Yelling at him like that, you know. It was really… brave of you. And kind of funny," Ash muttered the last sentence quietly as an afterthought, glancing down at his feet, then back at her. Misty heard his aside, though, and giggled. Ash immediately brightened at her smile. It was only Misty he was telling this to, after all, not some strange girl that he had fallen in love with by chance, not someone that he didn't already know very, very well.

"I don't know why I did that, yelling at Haunter," Misty chuckled a bit at herself, "I was just really… mad and all." She suddenly realized that she had interrupted his little speech, and she quickly shut herself up, dreading that she had ruined his train of thought.

"No, no… I'm glad you did," Ash grinned, and Misty inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. "It was… really cool, even though Haunter didn't really listen to you. … And… I want to thank you… for… well, being there, you know? I mean… staying with m-me, and not running off to find a way out of these caverns and leaving me behind. And, I want to… thank you for… not getting mad at me, or… or pushing me away when I was, well… holding your, uh, hand, you know, and sleeping next to you, and everything like that. I just wanted to say thank you… oh, and thank you… thanks a lot… for the crystal that you gave me, Misty. I… I really like it." Misty just didn't know what to say to all of this, but she didn't have a chance to say anything anyway. Ash had suddenly dashed headlong into a stack of thoughts and words that suddenly came spilling out in a rush.

"I really like the crystal a lot, Mist, both of the ones that we have, because it's, I dunno, kind of like, well, something special for, you know, just the two of us, to have one each that we gave each other, and I, well, I think that maybe, well, you and I are, you know, kind of special when we're together, 'cause we make a pretty good team together, like in Double Battles, you know, and I really like that it's me and you that are kind of, you know, like I said, special and all, because I really like it when you and I are, well, together and, you know, having fun and all, just being ourselves, and I'm really glad that we seem, well, I think that we seem at least, kind of closer than before we fell into these caverns, you know, closer as in, well, knowing each other or, uh, you know, things like that, and well I'm just really glad, and, even though I think I already said this, but I don't remember if I did or not, well, I wanted to say that I really like it that we're closer and that we seem to make a pretty good team together and, well, I really enjoy being with you, and, well, you see, I want to say, well, I'm going to say something else, so, well, I…"

Ash finally paused, wishing that he could have the excuse of needing a breath of air, but having no real reason to stop now. He had sputtered out half of the gist of what he wanted to say, but it would be a miracle, he thought, if Misty had caught even a word between all of his 'well's and 'you know's. Misty had, in fact, understood most of what he was saying, and she liked everything that he had said, for she felt exactly the same way. She had absolutely no idea, however, what Ash's final thesis was going to be, and as a credit against her, didn't even think that Ash could possibly be talking about what she had been thinking the whole time they had been sitting still. Ash, knowing that he was on the homestretch, gathered the last amount of courage to continue after his messed-up start.

"Anyway," Ash began to state more calmly, and impulsively, grabbed both of her hands, which were hanging to her side, and held them tightly in his own. This sent Misty into a great state of curiosity and anticipation. "What I really wanted to say, Misty, is that… you're… so important to me, and I really, really, really enjoy being with you, and for whatever reason caused you to come back to travel with me, well, I'm glad you're here. To tell you the truth, Mist… life was really miserable when you were gone. …I don't think… that I could ever stand… to live anymore, or, since it kind of looks like we might, well, really die now, I don't think that I could ever stand to spend eternity as a ghost or whatever, without you with me." Ash hadn't thought much about the death that might be extremely imminent, and though he was now discussing the deepest part of his heart with her, it loomed very close, so Ash felt that he ought to say what he really meant: if he was to die forever, he didn't want to be alone without the one that he loved so very much.

"Misty, I really did want to say all of those things to you, but, well, I haven't said the most important thing yet." He glanced at the hands that he was holding in his own. He squeezed them gently, and when he felt the faint and shy tightness of Misty clutching back, it gave him the strength to finish what he started. "What I want to tell you most of all, and I want you to know this forever, whatever happens, is that-" In a split second, an idea, seemingly very preposterous, hit Misty as to what Ash had been doing all along. _… A…confession-?_

"I love you."

For the first time, the notion suddenly hit Ash that he should not only have wondered what to say or when to say how he felt, but if! _Oh. My. Ho-Oh._ _…What… if… she… doesn't… love… me… back…_ The idea that Misty might not feel the same way hadn't occurred to him, as excited as he was. He had simply wanted to tell her how he felt. All of the evil things that could result from his proclamation, all of which Misty had worried and fretted and lost thousands of hours of sleep over herself, hit him like ten tons of bricks: her not taking him seriously and laughing at him, her wondering if Haunter's attacks on him had given him brain damage and made him insane, or, worst of all evils, complete and utter rejection, and the pending loss of, not only the one he loved the most, but his best friend, too. Ash felt like he was about to faint. What had he recklessly gone out and done?

Misty also felt like she was about to faint, but for a different reason. _Oh. My. Ho-Oh. …This… must… be… a… dream…_ The idea that Ash might feel the same way as she felt about him was an idea that she had never taken serious, not truly seriously. Yet here was Ash, flat out telling her that he loved her. This wasn't, couldn't be possible, but suddenly, it was. In all of her wild dreams, such as the ones that she had been having as she sat by him on the crystalfall, he had been so romantic when he told her how he felt about her. This was so very different, but Misty loved the true version that had just factually happened to her more than any of the ones of her imagination. He hadn't been extremely romantic, but he had said what he had said in a very Ash-y kind of way, and Misty would truly have it no other way than to have it from his heart, even being the romantic that she was. And it suddenly occurred to her that, after all the long time of her pining to tell him and worrying that May might say something first, he had beating her to the punch, and confessed the same feelings she had to her, before she had even tried, on a leap of faith that Misty had been so scared to commit to. Little did she know that Ash was now hurting in his mind because he felt that he had leapt too soon without thinking of the consequences.

His hands still clutching hers, Ash gazed down at his shoes in udder disbelief at himself. Before any worse thoughts entered his head, however, he heard her voice, as if from a far-off distance, saying his name. He looked up, very fearful, full of more fear than he had felt when they first saw Haunter. She was gazing at him, her eyes wide. "…Do you mean it, Ash? …That… you… love me?" A pause, then Ash nodded slowly. "…And… how, Ash?" At his slightly puzzled look, she quietly prompted him a bit more. "…I mean, like… romantically…?" Slowly, Ash nodded dismally, barely able to look her in her beautiful eyes. Then, he heard the gasp, and he quickly noticed how wide and excited her eyes suddenly seemed. It was when the edges of her mouth began to twitch upwards in a smile that Ash felt a strong glimmer of recovered hope. Her eyebrows had knitted together, and her eyes began to look watery as if she was about to cry. She bit her lip gently, but had a smile on her face the whole time. Ash felt his worries begin to vanish slowly and his excitement to rebuild.

The breaking point for Misty had finally, after all of this time, arrived. She could wait absolutely no longer. "Oh, Ash!" Misty cried, holding his hands tighter than she had ever done before as tears threatened to fall, "…I …I love you, too!" There it was. She had done it.

A wave of relieved exhaustion rushed out of her, and unable to stand anything more, she dropped his hands, rushed to him, flung her arms around his neck, and began sobbing into his right shoulder in relief and ecstasy. Ash immediately wrapped his arms around her, too, one hand around her waist and one touching the back of her head, and found, to his surprise, that he had broken down into tears, too. At this discovery, he began to laugh and cry at the same time, just as Misty was now sobbing joyfully into his neck. He had almost, in a short amount of time, believed that this could never be, and now it was. She was his, and he was hers, and this perfect-ness would always be for as long as forever, multiplied by as many crystals as there were in the crystalfall, and past the boundaries of time that the world had so strangely, and sometimes cruelly, set up. Ash understood this. Misty understood this. They didn't say a word about it, but both understood better than if they had spoken it a million times over.

They stood, for the longest time, just holding each other this way, sobbing, until tears were no longer possible. Misty couldn't remember another time when she and Ash were this close together. They had both locked onto each other so tight that if they had been in their bodies, they might have suffocated each other. She could feel his fingers slowly and tenderly intertwine themselves in her short, fluffy hair as he pulled her closer with his other hand, and Misty responded by latched her fingers onto the back of his shirt and bury her nose in his own fluffy hair. Her mind was so full of happiness, and questions, and surprise, and wonder, that she could do nothing except hold him, as she had wanted to hold him for so long. Ash was completely, and rightful so, astonished. He had thought that almost an hour of time had gone by fast, but these past few minutes, the ones spent on the crystalfall, had seemed like an eternity in their own right. Not only had he gone from not giving much thought on love to realizing how much he desperately loved Misty, but he had told her how he felt and discovered that she felt the same way.

A bizarre thought occurred to Ash. _I've… I've got a… a girlfriend_. But it was more than that, and he knew it. _No… I… I have… a soulmate._

Soulmate.

Ash suddenly pulled back from Misty a bit, for he wanted to see her face. Misty didn't get upset, for she immediately knew what he was doing, and pulled back, too. Then, still holding onto one another, their noses touched at the tip and they saw how many tear of joy had been shed for the other person. Misty, still choked up, raised her left hand and began to wipe Ash's tears away with one finger, and began to quietly mutter, "Oh, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you." Ash choked up again, spilling more tears onto Misty's fingers, and making Misty cry more, too. As her right hand began to wipe away tears from his right eye now, Ash slowly raised his own right hand to his Pokémon League hat and slipped two fingers between it and his hair. He was able to get a hold of what he wanted, and he slowly pulled out Misty's pale blue bloodstained handkerchief. Misty simply laughed and choked up again as he began to wipe her eyes with the edge of the handkerchief, and softly mutter himself, "Oh, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you."

After most of the tears had been dried away from both of their pairs of eyes, even the fresh tears, Ash placed both of his arms around Misty's waist, the handkerchief wadded up in one hand. Misty wrapped her arms around his neck. They were standing once again with their noses touching right at the very tip, and their eyes locked. They were still and quiet for a moment, and then Ash saw an emotion in Misty's eyes that he had seen before. He had seen the look directed at himself from Misty, and he had seen May with that look sometimes when she was staring off into space for no reason at all. Ash now knew what it was. It was love.

The warm sensation in his stomach had burned for this whole time, but seeing the love in her eyes made it boil over so that Ash felt like he was using the Overheat attack. Then, a different sensation overwhelmed him, and, very oddly enough, he knew exactly what it was. The same new sensation hit Misty, too, and, of course, she knew what it was, too. The smallest of looks passed between Ash's and Misty's eyes, and they both understood. Ash was afraid, but ready. Misty was nervous, but exhilarated.

Slowly, they shifted their noses so that they were no longer touching and let another part of themselves touch instead: their lips. Suddenly, their slightly opened lips were touching gently to the other's, their eyes closed, letting the brand new sensation filter into their bodies. Ash's hand went back up to finger her hair, and one of Misty's hands leisurely reached up and swiped Ash's ghostly League hat backwards off of his head so that she could run her fingers through his hair, too. The hat hit the crystalfall top without a sound. Her nose pressed into his cheek softly, and he pressed his lips further into hers, tasting her soft ghostly skin. They both thought of nothing, but let the feel of the other person overwhelm them.

Ash had shared his first kiss with Misty, and Misty had shared her first kiss with Ash. The kiss lasted a bit longer than a normal first kiss would have, but this was all right, and is all right, if your first kiss is with the one that you know that you will love from now until the end of time.

As they had started it at the same time, both Ash and Misty slowly withdrew their lips from each other at the same time, and wound up back with their nose tips touching and eyes penetrating the other's. Fear and nervousness were gone and completely replaced by happiness. Ash smiled. Misty smiled. They understood. With slow movements, Misty slowly buried her head back into Ash's shoulder, this time his right shoulder. Ash wrapped his arms around her shoulders, still holding tightly to her handkerchief, and leaned his left cheek against her hair. They were quiet and still, feeling the peace that now flowed through both of them.

"…When?" Misty whispered, talking into his shirt. Ash understood, even when Misty didn't elaborate in her question.

"…Well… probably about… five minutes ago." Ash heard a small sigh of astonishment come from her. After a moment, he whispered back. "…When?"

She was silent for a moment. "…Ever since… I saw the way you acted when… your Caterpie evolved into Metapod…" Ash didn't ask. No reason for how a person could discover how they felt about someone else would ever seem strange to Ash, not now.

They stood there for another moment, and then Misty straightened up, still wrapped in his arms, and looked into Ash's face, which was so full of love and happiness and excitement. Misty wasn't scared anymore. She wasn't scared of being who she really was. She wasn't scared that Ash wouldn't love her. She wasn't scared that May might be able to take Ash away from her. She knew, more than she knew anything else, that she was loved. She was loved by Ash. Misty felt complete. Misty felt at home.

Suddenly, Ash twitched. A bit of fear crept into his eyes. Misty stiffened at seeing his expression. "Ash, what's wrong?" she asked quickly, letting her worried voice keep its truly worried tone.

"I'd… I'd almost forgotten," Ash spoke softly but urgently, "The hour! It's almost up, if it's not gone already! We… I know it seems hopeless, Misty, but we need to try to do something!"

Misty nodded, stepping back a bit to get a better look at Ash. "You're right. We can't give up without a fight. Let's… well, we were headed for the first cavern when we stopped here. I think we ought to keep with that, don't you think?"

Ash agreed instantly. "Yeah, let's do that. Come on, Mist, let's go." He was more reluctant than he realized to let go of Misty now, but she slipped her right hand into his left one immediately when they parted, and Ash was content for the moment.

"Don't forget your hat," Misty whispered in a playful hiss, tugging him back down as Ash was about to float away from the crystalfall. Ash giggled rather naughtily, face completely blushed over in blue, remembering what had caused his hat to fall off of his head in the first place. He picked it up, replaced Misty's bloodstained and tearstained handkerchief in the lining, and flopped it back onto his head. Misty smiled at the homely sight. "…And I like it when you call me 'Mist'. …It's sweet."

"I'll remember that!"

Sableye was curled up into a dull motionless heap between two close-laying stalagmites. If his unblinking stare could turn into laser beams, the ice in front of him would have melted a long time ago. He knew that it was selfish to feel pity for himself, but failing to save three people from being killed in the same way wasn't a record that would make anyone have good self esteem. He could feel Shuppet's presence nearby, and he was certain that it was watching him, even though he didn't look up to see if this was true. Sableye wished that he could understand the Shuppet. Did it want him to do something about all of this? He didn't have anything left that he could do. Did the Shuppet know something that he didn't? Sableye gave the smallest sigh, the first time in a few minutes that he had shown any sign of being alive himself. It would be just his luck if the Shuppet knew someway to stop Haunter that Sableye didn't, and then Ash and Misty would die because he couldn't understand the strange blank stares that it sent-

Sableye flinched, his eyes suddenly growing wide. His internal clock's alarm had just gone off. An hour, sixty minutes, had just gone by.

At that precise moment, malevolent laughter filled the dark last cavern, echoing from the biggest black hole in the back wall.

_…I am so bored. Geesh, where's are's those two already?_ Meowth sighed. He had been sitting by himself in the same spot, next to the hole in the ground that Jesse and James had disappeared through, for an hour now. The summer sun beating down on him in the meadow caused his cream-colored fur to be rather oily with sweat, which definitely wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world to the talking Pokémon. Rather grumpily, Meowth stretched his stiff front paws out in front of him, and shifted his weight to the opposite side of his body to attempt to get more comfortable while sitting in the dust grass blades. His ears drooped, and he sighed, a whine in his voice. _Well, this is what's I get for hangin' around undependable kinds of humans, I guess, huh?_

"That's it!" he finally spat out loud, "I's aint taken no more of this! I'm gonna go find where's they left that 'ot-air balloon if'n I's drop dead from heat stroke!" With his worn-out impatient mindset, Meowth was about to stand up and leave, when his sharp ears caught a whirling sound, coming from somewhere that he hadn't yet identified, which eventually turned into a whoosh. The sound grew closer, and Meowth was about to panic when straight out of the hole in the ground came a rope with a large grapple hook on the end. Meowth continued his train of thought by actually panicking, covering his head with his paws and yowling bloody murder, but only until he saw that the grappling hook was lodged firmly into the soil, and not into his back. He sighed, slumping over. _Oh, Persian curses! It's only Jesse and James comin' back up on one of their's Escape Ropes. _

Meowth hastily tried to brush himself off to look more presentable, as if he hadn't been drug down in the least, as the rope grew taunt and wiggled as Jesse and James undoubtedly were climbing out. It took a little while before either appeared, which showed Meowth just how deep the hole had been. Suddenly, Jesse's hand came over the side of the hole, and she dragged herself out sluggishly. She crawled, on hands and knees, away from the hole as James clambered over the edge at the speed of a Slakoth. The grappling hook was tugged out of the ground by James' last pull and it fell back down the hole. Meowth was astonished, and to say the truth, frightened. Jesse and James looked absolutely beat. Both were on their hands and knees, gasping for breath, heads down.

"You's two okay?" Meowth muttered uncertainly. "You's look like you been runnin' for miles."

Jesse responded with the faintest of laughs and a, "Mmmmh."

Meowth blinked. He leaned down to see if he could see what expression was on Jesse and James' faces. He was disturbed even further to see how flushed and stunned their faces where. Both pairs of sapphire and emerald eyes looked dull, yet full of intense fear, and seemed to have a far-off expression on them. Meowth chuckled nervously, trying to lighten the dark mood that they had brought with them, as he had no clue as to what could have possibly happened. "Heh, you two's, it's… uh… heh, it looks like you two's have seen a ghost!" Meowth's laughter died in his throat as James immediately burst into tears, quite unbecoming for a male human his age, but appropriate if someone knows what Jesse and James knew.

"…Wha… What happened?" Meowth cautiously asked. Neither responded. Meowth was about to ask again, when suddenly, the noise of pounding feet began to be heard and started to grow louder. All three flinched and perked up as they realized that the sound was growing closer to them. James had stopped crying, but Jesse had begun to unconsciously shake all over. Meowth's claws instinctly opened up, but he retracted them, knowing the probability that if it was a Pokémon, it wasn't going to weak against a Normal- Type attack.

The pounding in the woods began to become more distinct, and was obviously of more than one creature, whatever that creature may be. They also began to hear a rustling through the branches of the trees, and a beating of wings. By now, all three were shaking, tense, and scared out of their wits. The pounding footsteps were soon identifiable as human feet, and there were three distinct patterns of gaits that could be felt on the trembling ground.

Suddenly, the bushes at the edge of the meadow shook violently, and three figures burst through the foliage screaming two words ferociously and angrily at the same time at the top of their lungs.

"TEAM ROCKET!"

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

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…Good present, huh? Actually, I don't see why anyone reading this kind of book wouldn't like it, but I hope you really appreciate it! I've been really stressing over it, hoping that it is okay, and I've reread and edited it at least six times! I'm not sure how long it's going to be until Chapter 10 is ready, because I'm going to work on it along with my 'site (and illustrating, too). As always, feel free to e-mail me, and I'll try to get back, even thought I've had a hard time getting internet time to return e-mails lately (I'm working on it!). And please, REVIEW IT! You have NO idea how much your reviews motivate me to get working harder! Happy 2005! 

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 9's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter. :)


	10. Never Gonna Stop Searching For You

I would ask each and every one of you to wring my neck (or at least do _something _sadistic to me) for how long it has taken me to get this written, but then, I guess, you'd never know what happens in this story, right? I mean, TWO MONTHS AND A HALF! COME ON, EEVEE! I know many of you don't believe in excuses, but here are mine anyway: This semester I have an evil and insane English teacher who totally zaps all of the joy of writing out of me; I ended up writing a short story for my mom's birthday in mid-February; Another anime caught my attention and sucked my Poke-ness away for a week as that series started (I'll let you all figure out what it is I had an 'affair' with…) but my Poke-ness is back now. So there you have it, and now for my apologies: I'm sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, and… sorry. I thank all of you loyal fans for sticking with me, and I mourn for those readers I have lost because of the longevity of my posting absence. Oh, yeah, almost forgot… Chapter 9's title of "…share with me your secrets deep inside…" comes from the song _What Kind Of Pokémon Are You?_ from the Pokémon: 2 B A Master CD. Congratulations to these readers and reviewers: The girl who flamed, Funkyafroman, Marlex, bluejolteon, P.R. Dragonite, happyham, Stacee, Jirachi the Legend, chipsyketchum, J.C. the Wabbit, KasumiSatoshi, Chibimatchmaker, Sparklewolf, Ri2, Uppa, and JediMasterDariaak. Finally, here we go… !

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**CHAPTER 10: …Never Gonna Stop Searching For You…**

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The three figures, bursting out of the foliage in their chorus of angry shouting, all wore expressions of the most extreme kind. May, clutching a rather frightened Togepi exceptionally tight to her chest, had worry lines etched across her brow, and her sapphire eyes glittered in tranquil doubt and mistrust. Max had a look of the utmost disgust on his face, his caramel eyes narrowed in repugnance behind his black-rimmed glasses and his mouth sneering in scorn. Brock was simply livid, the very picture of cold hatred shinning in his narrow onyx eyes and heavily inward-slanted eyebrows. Understandably, Team Rocket was instantly filled with immobilizing terror, which only strengthened from what it had been on Jesse and James' parts, for they hadn't yet gotten over their fear of what the snowy caverns far under them housed in its deepest grotto. 

As the three 'twerps' emerged from bushes at the edge of the clearing and galloped toward the Rocket members in the center of the meadow beside the hole, a whole menagerie of Pokémon, the 'twerp' Pokémon, followed close on their heels. First came Poochyena, barking and bounding after his master through the shrubbery in the longest strides he could muster on his short furry legs, an unnaturally serious look on his face. Then four Pokémon appeared in a whirl of wings from the canopy of the forest, Beautifly and Crobat flying closer to the ground and Noctowl and Wingull above, all crying out savagely in their own languages. Next came Pikachu and Treecko hurtling out of the branches of the trees, Treecko with gleaming yellow eyes and mouth clamped tightly on his twig toothpick, and Pikachu landing on the ground in a shower of frenzied sparks that erupted from his ruby cheeks.

In the headlong dash towards the paralyzed Team Rocket, Pokéballs were eagerly snatched off of belts and from inside bags, and their Pokémon contents released from the red-and-white spheres as the Pokémons' names were shouted out. A whole squad of aquatic creatures appeared from their Pokéballs, Corphish, Corsola, Staryu, Psyduck, Lotad, and Mudkip, followed by Brock's roaring Rock- type Onix. Vulpix and Torchic arrived on the scene in a fiery blaze of force, and Bayleef, her eyes glittering furiously, charged forward towards Team Rocket with an indignant bawl.

The three Team Rocket members immediately crawled to each other and became a jumble as they clambered to hide behind the others, the end result being Meowth squeezed in the middle as Jesse and James grabbed onto each other in terror. They tried to scoot backwards away from the oncoming stampede, but were prevented when Onix, and the four Flying- types that landed on Onix's rocky surface, blocked them from behind. The Water- types clustered together to confine Jesse, James, and Meowth to Team Rocket's right, and Poochyena, Torchic, Vulpix, Treecko, and Bayleef enclosed their enemies to the left. Pikachu, his cheeks sparking as if he had short-circuited, was alone in blocking the group in the front, but that fact didn't matter, for the look on his face was enough to keep anyone away. "PIKA!" he shrieked, standing on his back paws and balling his front ones into fists. An eruption of flickering electricity made Team Rocket flinched.

At that moment, May, Brock, and Max hurtled past Pikachu to stop right in front of the recoiling threesome, and glowered at Jesse, James, and Meowth, respectively. May stood rigid in front of Jesse, still clutching the alarmed Togepi, with a look on her face that surpassed any dirty look that she had given Jesse during their clash over whose Wurmple was whose. Meowth was quite alarmed at the way that Max stared unblinkingly at him in repulsion, the lenses of his glasses glistening as they reflected the late afternoon sun. James gulped, for he had clearly gotten the worse end of the bargain. He was now subject to the wrath of an uncommonly and exceptionally angry Brock.

Brock wasted no time in intimidating his enemy, but went straight for the throat… literally. He grabbed James' white uniform collar with both hands and dragged him off the ground. "WHERE ARE THEY?" Brock yelled desperately in James' face. James was scared completely speechless. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH THEM? WHAT HAVE YOU THREE DONE WITH THEM THIS TIME, YOU… YOU…"

"Brock," Max spoke up in a soft monotone, his voice quivering, "Calm down a bit, huh? Don't worry…" he glared forbiddingly at Meowth again, and the cat flinched, "…they'll tell us alright."

After a tense moment, Brock let James drop to the ground, and an immensely tired look swept his face. "You're right, Max. I… I didn't mean to lose my temper, but… they keep doing this. They keep… stalking us, and I've about had it." Suddenly, all of the ferocious anger that had built up inside of him was gone. Eyes becoming moist in grief, Brock slowly walked past Team Rocket (which caused the three to watch his movements carefully) and sat down gently on his Onix's rocky back next to Noctowl. Jesse, glancing at James rubbing his sore neck gently, was surprised at how angry the Cooking Twerp had gotten. He rarely ever lost his temper, and was usually the most calm of all of them. _And we haven't done anything, this time, either…_ Jesse realized that the Cooking Twerp was talking about the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp. _They obviously haven't found the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp yet…_ Jesse stifled a gasp. _Of course not… there's no way that they could have found them before us… they… don't know… what happened yet…_

It was then that the three Team Rocket members saw how flushed the faces of the twerps had been the whole time. They had obviously been running a very long way for a very long time, just as Jesse and James had been running. May was breathing heavily, Max's normally coiffed hair was hanging limply around his face, and Brock was dripping in sweat, which was mingled with a few wet tears. Though they didn't seem as drained, even the twerps' Pokémon looked a bit weary. Team Rocket had no idea as to how the twerps had found them, out here in the middle of the woods of Route 119, in a place the twerps had already searched and left a long time ago.

"Just for the record," Jesse spat bitterly, after a ragged silence in which all of their heart rates slowly decelerated, "We didn't do anything to your precious little twerp friends this time, twerps." Pikachu sparked angrily, amidst a small chorus of booing barks and shrieks from his fellow Pokémon teammates and friends.

"You have them," Brock muttered plainly, from behind the trio of scoundrels, "In that hole over there." Everyone's eyes seemed to dart over to the hole in the dirt on the ground of the meadow. "You set another trap for them, like always, and they fell into it. So you have them. Give us Ash and Misty… now." The Pokémon all nodded savagely. May and Max, who had backed up to stand on either side of Pikachu, also nodded.

"Didn't 'cha hear whats she justs said?" Meowth spoke up heatedly, "She's said that's we don't gots them, so that means we don't!"

"Yeah right!" May inserted skeptically.

Max was looking rather thoughtful, staring down at Jesse, James, and Meowth. "…I don't know," he pondered aloud, brushing a piece of hair out of his face, "…Maybe they really don't."

"See?" Jesse mentally breathed a small sigh of relief, "We really didn't do anything to your two missing twerps." _…But we should have… we should have done what James had wanted to do… we should have taken the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp's d-… d-…dead bodies with us…_ She somberly passed her eyes over at the hole in the ground, then glanced at James. He had been silent the whole time, and his own emerald eyes were fixed dully on the gap that lead down to the caverns underneath them.

"I still don't believe it," Brock replied unenthusiastically, crossing his arms, "We've searched almost this whole forest for them for almost twenty-four hours now, and we still haven't found them, so they've obviously been prevented from rejoining us by something."

"They have." James quietly spoke up. His eyebrows were furrowed together. Only Jesse understood the irony of his comment.

"Of course they have!" May loudly proclaimed, setting Togepi on the ground. Hands on her hips, she leered at the trio. "By you three! You three have prevented them!"

"We haven't!" Jesse defended herself and her teammates as hotly as she could while the image of the pallid motionless bodies burned in her brain.

"Yes, you have," Max replied, but without entire conviction.

"For the last time, we haven't done anything to your twerpy little friends!" Jesse shouted.

"Why are we always the ones to blame?" James whispered quietly in Meowth's ear, distraught, "I mean, I know that ninety-nine percent of the time we are the ones to blame, but that doesn't mean always! Why don't they think Team Aqua or Team Magma made off with them, or even Cassidy and Botch? Why don't they think they… eloped or something?"

"Why's woulds they's thinks that?" Meowth softly purred back with a joking sneer. James remembered whose side of the bet Meowth was on, and he frowned, his eyes narrowing. Meowth chuckled. "Ands for Persian's sakes, Jimmy boy, the guy's name's is Butch, nots Botch. Geesh, evens I'd hate to be called Skitty."

"Well, my name's not Jimmy boy," James muttered resentfully back. To say the truth, he wasn't in the mood to really care about his answer. All he could think about was the caverns underneath them.

"Shut up!" Jesse quickly rounded on them, which stopped the somewhat bizarre conversation that had been whispered behind her. She felt very mixed up right now, and that made her feel vexed. Her brain was spinning from trying to argue with the twerps while the image of a dead Ash and Misty flashed across her eyes, pushing her to explain what she had seen in the cavern. Most of her body was aching, and her legs were especially sore from all of the running she had been doing, and from sitting so long on the hard ground. It felt like too much. Jesse could stand it no longer. With a groan of exhaustion, Jesse lowered head down into her hands. Everyone stared at her, puzzled. James carefully placed a hand on her shoulder, to see if she was all right. In a muffled voice, she slowly muttered, "We… did not… do anything… to… them."

Brock was not phased by this statement, May began to look a little doubtful, and Max seemed on the verge of being convinced. The young boy adjusted his glasses a bit, then slowly questioned, "If you three don't have Ash and Misty, then what is this hole doing here? And why were you, Meowth, guarding it if Ash and Misty aren't in it?"

"How'd dos yous know that I was sittin' there?" Meowth asked incredulously.

"Noctowl and Wingull," May replied, "They were flying over the forest to see if they could see Ash and Misty, but they only saw you sitting by that hole."

"Noctowl and Wingull thought that you lot might have taken them," Brock continued, placing a hand on Noctowl's head and rubbing it in praise. Noctowl closed his eyes and hooted gently. Wingull rustled her feathers, eyeing the trio almost hungrily, as if she would like nothing better than to attack them ferociously with all of her power. "So they came back to get us."

"And we ran all of the way here," Max sighed wearily.

Pikachu's ears drooped in tiredness. His cheeks had stopped sparking. "Pika," he agreed with Max.

"So why were you sitting by that hole then, Meowth," Brock asked, "if you didn't capture our friends with another one of your dumb schemes to catch Pikachu?"

In a stubborn streak, Meowth crossed his paws and declared haughtily, "I ain't tellin' yous nothing!"

Knowing that this could cause a major uproar in the twerp Pokémon ranks, which could send them blasting off again, James quickly spoke up, "I'll tell you." Meowth appeared outraged at this, and he looked to see what Jesse thought of it. She didn't seem to notice; at least, she didn't look up. Her head was still in her hands. Meowth thought the opposite, but James knew that Jesse wanted him to say this, for she wanted to do so herself, but couldn't.

"…Well?" May asked, prompting him.

"Meowth was sitting there because…" James paused for a second, unsure if to continue, "…he was waiting for Jesse and I to come back up the hole. You see, we fell into it."

This statement caused a bit of merriment among the twerps' Pokémon that were circled around Team Rocket. They all grinned and chuckled in their own ways. Max snorted in laughter and May giggled teasingly. A small smile flitted across Brock's face. "Well, that's no surprise," he muttered, when the gaiety had died down, "I'll believe that. Continue."

"And, well…" James didn't know how to explain everything exactly.

"How did you two fall in the hole?" May pressed impatiently, "Why did you dig the hole, if it wasn't a trap?"

"Well, first of all, we didn't dig the hole," James sputtered quickly. Meowth gave him a dirty look for revealing the trio's secrets. "It was there all ready when we got here. And, well… we decided that we would use the hole, rather than dig one, because…" his face grew a bit red apologetically, "… we heard you three twerps coming and we wanted… to try to catch Pikachu."

This statement produced groans out of the Pokémon and their trainers. Pikachu's ears drooped perpendicularly to the ground, and he sighed, muttering to himself and wondering why it always had to be him that Team Rocket was after. After a moment, Max waved for everyone to be silent, and their noises slowly diminished to nothing. When it was totally silent, he motioned for James to continue.

"…So… it was a trap, but we… didn't dig it. We didn't know how deep it was either," James stammered, and Brock wondered why James would mention the hole's depth, "So, anyway, you twerps and your Pokémon came through this meadow, but you three walked right over the top of the hole and went on. It didn't cave in. Jesse…" he glanced at her. Her head was still in her hands, and she showed no sign of listening, though he knew she was. "…She was really ang-… upset, so we went over to the hole to see why it hadn't caved in. Then, we realized we didn't know where the hole had been ourselves, because we covered it up so well, but we didn't find it… until we fell down it, of course."

Poochyena had looked downcast and solemn throughout James' whole story, and had whined during the last part. Glancing at his small Pokémon, Max's eyes suddenly lit up. "Poochy," he muttered softly, "You knew the hole was there, didn't you? You could smell it, but… I didn't know what you were saying." Poochyena looked up at his master with sad eyes and nodded. Max's shoulders drooped, and he patted his leg so Poochyena would come sit by him. The wolf pup did, and Max ruffled Poochyena's pointed ears sadly. _I can't even understand my own Pokémon… I could never be as good a trainer as Ash if I can't… He and Pikachu understand each other perfectly… We'll work on it, then._

"And then what?" Brock pressured James to go on with his story. He was getting impatient. If Team Rocket really didn't have Ash and Misty, he wanted to get on with the search for them.

James thought about it for a moment, his emerald eyes glazed over in contemplation. Finally, he spoke in a fast whisper, "Well… Jesse and I… it isn't really a hole… it's a tunnel…" Meowth was listening intently, for he didn't know this part, "… it's a tunnel and it goes straight down into the ground… and it leads down into… these… caverns. There are these enormous caverns, very long and tall, with the stalagmites and stalactites, you know. They're huge caverns, and… they're filled with snow. A whole bunch of snow, that comes half way up your leg… and it's bright inside, too. All lit up, but there aren't any lanterns or torches, it's just light… and farther below, in another cavern, the floor is made of ice… it's very cold in all of these caverns..."

There was a long pause. Everyone watching was baffled and bewildered, even Meowth, but the twerps' doubt of the truthfulness of the story grew quickly. After a minute had passed, Brock, May, and Max all burst out laughing, and their Pokémon did the same. James looked confused, but quite embarrassed. The laughter continued for a moment or two. Brock finally was able to calm down enough to say sarcastically, "Yeah, a cavern filled with snow that's all lit up? That's a nice story. It's almost as nice as that one you told about the little boy that dies out in the snow while his Growlithe howls by his side the whole night." The laughter continued. May and Max didn't know what Brock was talking about, but James certainly did. It had happened such a long time ago, but James' face grew a dark crimson red at the thought of the story where the little boy had supposed to be himself. (James hadn't meant to get so carried away in his drama, but it had come so naturally to him. He did remember, though, that he had told it so well that Brock and Ash, and Jesse and Meowth, had begun to cry and bawl sadly, "James is dead!" …until Misty pointed out that James was standing right in front of them telling the story and, therefore, could not be dead.)

Amidst the laughter, Jesse slowly raised her head up from her hands and glanced around. James was looking quite downcast, and Meowth still looked confused. Jesse felt quite angry for a moment. _If the twerps believe any of us, they ought to believe James. He's the honest one of our group._ "He's right," Jesse spoke up, slowly getting to her feet, and everyone's attention immediately snapped to her, "He's telling the truth. At this moment, there are three caverns underneath us, one on top of the other, which you get through by falling down holes. All of them are filled with snow, but the last one also has a floor of ice. It's bright in there, I don't know how, but it is. You three better believe James, too." She growled her last sentence, as her two partners stood up beside her nervously.

"Why should we believe you three?" Brock questioned, standing up from Onix. He walked over to stand with May, Max, Pikachu, Togepi, and Poochyena.

"Didn't yous all ready ask thats question?" Meowth muttered under his breath.

"Well, I guess it could make sense," Max interjected thoughtfully, petting Poochyena's ears, "under certain circumstances… Did you two see any Pokémon down there, by any chance?"

"A Sneasel," Jesse and James chorused at the same time.

"Well," Max could see in his mind the first page on Sneasels in the Dark-type book he was reading, "there could definitely be a substantial amount of snow if a Sneasel used multiple attacks like Icy Wind or Blizzard, which it most certainly can do, but that wouldn't account for the light, since a Sneasel can't learn Flash and that's my guess on how these caverns could be lit up without any visible source. However, if a Sneasel can live down there, then other Pokémon certainly can, and some other Ice-types like Snorunt can use Flash."

As May and Brock were still looking doubtful, James resolved that it was time to tell the twerps the whole truth. "They're down there," he muttered quietly to the ground underneath his feet, "…The Ma-… Ash and Misty are down there, in the last cavern."

Brock, May, Max, and the Pokémon all went deathly silent. The hush that enclosed them was a very tense one. Slowly, Max was able to utter the word, "Huh?" incredulously, just under his breath, but everyone heard it clear as day.

Meowth stared up at his partners, quite stunned, as Jesse slowly placed a hand on James' shoulder, trying to get him to understand that he should continue. James drew up a breath, released it, and then started again. "Ash and Misty are in the last cavern down there, but…" James felt the angrily glaring eyes of twenty-one people and Pokémon on him, and he knew that with everything he had to say, it was only going to get worse. "…they're…" He felt his eyes tearing up again, and he hated it. "…they're…"

Jesse knew that her sensitive partner was never going to be able to finish his sentence, no matter how hard he tried. "Gone." Her sapphire eyes stared up at the twerps blankly. "They're gone. They're… dead."

Brock, May, Max, Meowth, and the Pokémon all went deathly silent again, but this time the hush had a frighteningly stunned feel to it. May's eyebrows went together, as if she couldn't understand. Pikachu slowly put one front paw to his mouth, while taking a mystified Togepi by the hand with the other paw. Max blinked, then his caramel eyes grew wide behind his black-framed glasses. Brock didn't move, and was as still as a statue. Jesse glanced around at all of the Pokémon encircling them, and they were all stunned silent, too. "They're dead," Jesse repeated, her voice on the verge of cracking, "They're dead. Their… bodies are lying down there in the last cavern, on the ice. They're… gone."

"They…" James whispered slowly into the silence, "…were… murdered. Murdered. Ash and Misty were killed by… this… evil… Pokémon. We… Jesse and I were almost killed, too. The… thing came after us, too, when we saw their bodies, but we… managed to get out, I don't know how. It killed them… It… murdered them…"

"…No Pokémon has the will to kill," Max muttered factually to himself, completely unable to think emotionally yet, as he still could not believe that Ash and Misty were gone. However, as if to contradict his statement, an image of a monstrous Groundon on the ground far underneath of him as he rode a Flygon would not leave his mind.

The silence continued after that, so James continued too.

"…We know that… they're not just unconscious… because they're… ghosts… Yes… ghosts… We didn't see them because they're invisible, of course, but… they took us to their bodies… They dragged us all of the way to their bodies… so… they're dead."

The silence continued. Slowly and somberly, everyone in the meadow, person and Pokémon and twerp and Rocket member alike, turned to look at Brock. Brock had his arms crossed and was staring down at the ground, no expression on his face. He could see out of the corners of his eyes May and Max, whose moisture-filled sapphire and caramel eyes stared up at him blankly, looking to him for what to say or do or think or feel. Brock knew he was the adult again, the one who was responsible for his friends, the one who made the ultimate decision, just as he had been last night. Besides May and Max, he could also see Pikachu, holding onto little Togepi's paw, staring up at him, completely numb with disbelief, eyes tearing up quickly.

Gravely, Brock looked up at Jesse and James, and all eyes went to them instead. "What kind of Pokémon?" His voice was strong but wavering, emotionless but hurt, but over it all, his voice was determined. This sent a needed wave of resilience through the other twerps and all of their Pokémon.

Jesse spoke for James, who had become unable to speak again. "…A Haunter."

Brock thought for a moment, then gave a brisk nod. The Flying-types that had been resting on Onix's back fluttered back up into the air as Brock silently recalled all of his Pokémon back into their Pokéballs. Jesse, James, and Meowth all dodged the beams of light as May and Max, who followed Brock's lead without question, recalled May's, Misty's, and Ash's Pokémon, too. Poochyena was even recalled into his Pokéball by Max, which only happened very rarely. This left only Togepi, who was swept off of the ground by May, and Pikachu, who raced up to sit on Max's shoulder, out with the humans of their group. Brock started towards the hole, and had gotten halfway there before anyone realized what he was doing.

At the sound of a thump, Brock glanced quickly over at Team Rocket to see that James had swung his backpack off of his back and was pulling out three Escape Ropes. Brock paused, then walked purposely over to them. Emerald eyes staring into onyx ones, James laid the Escape Ropes in Brock's hands, and muttered quietly, "You'll need these."

Jesse, who quietly had placed a hand on James' shoulder, muttered, "There's heavy snow at the bottom of the hole, so it's well padded." Brock nodded mutely, pausing for only a moment to place the Escape Ropes in his own backpack, then headed purposely back over to the hole, May and Max following close behind.

When he got to the edge, he stared down into the giant, gaping, pitch black hole without any fear at all. Holding tightly to the straps of his backpack, Brock took a deep breath, let it out, then stepped off the edge. May gave a small gasp as Brock disappeared down the hole, for she hadn't been perfectly aware of what he had been going to do, but Max had been. Max waited for a moment or two, and then, when Pikachu had climbed into his arms and snuggled his cold black nose into Max's green polo shirt, stepped off the edge of the hole with only a little hesitation. His throat let out a small scream, but he choked it back by burying his face into Pikachu's golden fur, as the darkness flew up around him and the wind of his descent sent his black hair flying everywhere.

May gave an even bigger gasp as her younger brother's yelp echoed back up the hole. She stared down into the hole for a few long moments, very frightened, and Togepi gave off an anxious chirp in her arms. She glanced down, her eyebrows furrowed helplessly, at Togepi, then looked up at Jesse, James, and Meowth, who were all watching her carefully. May definitely did not want to be alone with Team Rocket, so shutting her eyes good and tight, she pulled Togepi closer and jumped, screaming loudly before her second foot had left the ground. She disappeared as quick as the others, but it was another moment or two before her scream became silent.

Jesse and James were still for a moment, then James swung his backpack up onto his back and they both turned away from the hole simultaneously. Meowth, with a look of confusion and uneasiness on his face, glanced up at his partners leaving and shouted to their backs quickly, "You's was just sayings all of thats, right? That ain't trues, right?" Jesse and James stopped, then James glanced over his shoulder at the cat.

"No." Meowth felt a cold chill run through his furry body. He couldn't believe the words his friends had just recounted. _But the Twerp… the Main Twerp never dies… no matter whats, he never dies…_ Meowth paused, then quickly followed Jesse and James as they left the meadow wordlessly, heading back through the woods of Route 119 to a grove of trees where their hot air balloon had been staked down while they went off to stalk Pikachu.

The breath was almost knocked out of Brock when he finally hit ground, but Jesse had not lied; the snow that Brock landed in cushioned his impact immensely. Brock quickly breathed in and out for a short moment, then scrambled into a sitting position. After a pause, he gave a small gasp, glancing around. _…They… they were telling the truth…these are caverns._ Silver marble-patterned cavern walls loomed up jaggedly in front of him and behind him, and his pants were already soaking up the cold snow.

Suddenly, Max appeared, falling from the hole in the cathedral-arch ceiling high above Brock, and the boy landed back-down, still holding Pikachu tightly, into a snow bank to Brock's right, scattering flurries, blocking him from Brock's sight for a moment. Max sat up stiffly, like Frankenstein's monster rising from his lab table, and made all of his unruly hair fall in front of his glasses. Pikachu peeked out from his sanctuary of the polo shirt with wide round eyes. Max blew at the sheet of long bangs that had formed over his face, but after it lifted at the ends, it only fell back into place. Nevertheless, he must have seen Brock looking at him through his hair, for he gave a thumbs-up sign.

Brock slowly got to his feet, his balance corrupted by a small bit of dizziness, and Max scrambled onto his feet, too, Pikachu leaping out of his arms into the snow that almost swallowed him up. A sound reached Brock's ears, though he was a bit slow to notice it, but when he did, he perked up immediately at the quickly crescendoing scream. _May!_ Brock looked up at the ceiling quickly, and as a shrieking figure came into view falling down towards him. Frantically, Brock held both of his arms out in front of him, bracing himself and keeping his eyes locked on the figure.

"AHHHH-" With a great "UMPH!" sound that cut off her scream, a terrified May landed square in Brock's waiting arms. The added weight made Brock unbalance, and after a short wobble and yelp of surprise, he fell backwards off of his feet, bringing May down with him. Flurries of snow gushed up on every side of them as they landed in the snow bank, and the only thing that could be seen above the pile of flurries were their legs sticking up into the air crookedly. An unscathed Togepi had leaped out of May's arms as May and Brock fell, and landed in Pikachu's arms, for the electric mouse had been waiting to catch the baby Pokémon as Brock had waited to catch May. Max missed the entire fiasco, as he had been struggling to get his hair to return to its regular position.

Max adjusted his glasses, then turned around to face the assembled group, Pikachu holding a bewildered Togepi high above his head and the snow bank, and May and Brock slowly sitting up, May rubbing her head woozily and Brock muttering dully, "Ow… Ow…Ow…" Max sighed.

When the stars had stopped going off in front of May's eyes, she shook her head one last time and glanced over at Brock, who face was quite close, in mild surprise. "Oh…" she muttered, blinking, "Thank you, Brock."

"Sure," Brock managed to mutter through a light headache, rubbing his head himself, "You're welcome. Any time." May nodded frankly. She sat still for a moment, as it made her head clear faster. It took her a moment before she saw Max roll his eyes, but she didn't understand why he was until Brock muttered, "Uh, May? Uh… could you let me up?"

May glanced down and turned red as a beet when she saw that she was sitting in Brock's lap. "Oh!" She struggled to stand up quickly, but in her haste, she kept falling back into his lap. Brock finally held out one hand and helped her up as best as he could, and she was able to stand all of the way up. "Sorry, Brock!"

Max assisted Brock in getting up out of the snow bank, and Brock shook flurries out of his spiky hair. Pikachu leaped onto Max's shoulder again, and gazed around in awe at the snowy silver cavern that they had landed in. Brock and Max were gaping at their surroundings, too, and when May finally had the courage to look up, she and Togepi were also awestruck by the environment. The five were motionless for a moment, standing close together in a huddle, only their eyes moving around to take in the cavern.

Suddenly, Max's conscious mind snapped back on, and he realized the graveness of their situation. He himself couldn't really believe that Ash and Misty could be gone forever, so even though Jesse and James had been right about everything so far, he kept telling himself that they might have mistaken unconsciousness for death, and that there had been no ghosts of Ash and Misty. Max didn't even know if he believed in ghosts or not, besides Ghost- type Pokémon anyway. "Come on," he growled solemnly, staring out at the grotto in front of them. He knew which way to go, as Jesse and James' trail was still marked in the snow by footprints. May and Brock glanced down at the young boy, their faces slowly growing solemn, too. With a nod each, they slowly started to make their way down that snowy cavern, letting Max lead the way with Brock behind him and May behind Brock.

After a minute or two, Brock, May, and Max were just visible from far down the cavern hallway near the ceiling, if one was up that high. But in fact, two were.

"Ash! Look!" Misty whispered in the left ear of her soulmate, her new 'boyfriend'. She was holding tightly onto his arm as they floated near the ceiling, just underneath of the stalactites, but not because she was afraid of the height or anything. She simply wanted to hold onto him. Being a ghost made her feel like she was in a dream, and the love that Ash had so sweetly confessed for her was what dreams were made of, so she didn't want to believe she was in a dream. _Besides,_ Misty thought, staring up at Ash's profile face, _there's no way, no possible way, that we could… really die forever. I mean… Ash has never died, after all of the things he's been through… it's like he can't die… and I know he wouldn't leave me behind if he got back in his body… We just can't die…_

Ash put his left arm around the shoulders of his new 'girlfriend' solemnly and pulled her close. He felt very somber at the moment, something that Ash seldom was if he didn't have to be, and he didn't like feeling this way. He wanted to feel happy, and joyfully, because he had found that he had been missing something he never knew he was missing until he finally had it. He narrowed his eyes, gazing down at the figures that were so slowly coming into view. The splotches of color that they made against the white snowy canvas were almost dazzling. After a moment, the yellow spot on the top of the first figure 'leaped' off into the snow, and started to 'bound' ahead of the others through the snow. Ash's eyes widened a bit. "It's… Pikachu…" Ash muttered to himself, then glanced at Misty, a desperate look on his face, "It's them! It's our group!"

With a gasp, Misty glanced back down at the three figures (and the Pikachu-looking one) making their way through the snow drifts. "It is! …It just has to be Brock and Max… and May." Misty held onto Ash's arm tighter when she spoke May's name, as if trying to keep Ash from thinking anything about the brown-haired girl. Misty knew in the deepest part of her heart that May could never take Ash away from her now, but that wasn't why she still felt resentful. She felt upset because May had a well-known stubborn streak a mile long, and if she wanted something, contest ribbon or otherwise, she would do anything to get it. Misty still considered May a threat, but a different kind now.

"I can't believe they actually got down here," Ash marveled quietly, shaking his head, "I mean, we hoped and prayed that they would, but I thought… it would be too much if they actually did."

"I know," Misty acquiesced. "But they are here, so let's see if we can get their attention and get them down to the last cavern. Sableye said we don't have a lot of time left before," she glanced down at her ghostly body, "this is all… permanent."

"Yeah, we need to get their attention, but maybe we ought to be, I dunno, less forceful, don't you think, in bringing them down there? I think we probably scared Jesse and James half to death."

"Perhaps just picking them up and flying them along was too surprising," Misty wondered in retrospect.

"Well, let's go down there, at least, and see what we can do," Ash decided. Misty nodded, and leaned on Ash's shoulder a bit harder, snuggling into it. Ash's cheeks darkened a bit, and he giggled, the slightest bit of nervousness in his voice. Misty laughed genuinely, which made Ash shed most of his tension. To Misty, it seemed as though that now they were back in (a strange kind of) reality, and not in the ethereal cavern of the million-color crystalfall, Ash felt more conscious about his affection for Misty and felt a bit more anxious about showing it. Right at that moment, he probably would've had reserves about kissing her, when he had no hesitation back in the otherworldly place. However, she knew in time that Ash would learn not to worry about such things. _Oh, Ash, _Misty thought, smiling to herself, _you're so hopeless!_

Max somberly watched Pikachu bounding through the snow in front of him. The electric mouse would leap into the snow bank ahead and disappear, then reappear as he leaped until he disappeared in the next snow bank. Max could hear the sound of snow sloshing around where Brock and May were walking behind him. He held tightly onto the straps of his and Ash's backpacks, which were slung across his back. His face would have been unreadable to anyone if they had glanced at it. His mouth was frowning, but it was just in replace of a smile, and not for anger. His eyes were emotionless, only blinking faintly behind his glasses. The reason for this was that he wasn't sure what to think or what to do, for he didn't know if he would have to be sad or happy at the end of all of this. He didn't show any emotion because he was afraid that it could be the wrong emotion, or that it would give away how sensitive he felt. It was just better to be frowning and emotionless and silent when he didn't know what to make of the world.

Suddenly, the hairs on the back of Max's neck stood up as he felt a prickly feeling run across his skin. The frigid snow was already burning into his bare legs, almost up to his knees, but this new feeling was very different from that. He stopped walking immediately and stood as still and as stiff as a Xatu, only his caramel eyes darting back and forth anxiously, unable to locate what he sought to find, to see. Brock and May both stopped behind him, curious but wary at his frozen position. Pikachu stopped bounding through the snow when he glanced back a few yards away and saw Max being so still.

"I…" Max whispered, but trailed off, never really intending to finish his sentence. Because he couldn't see Max's face, Brock wondered if Max was on the verge of crying or something, and thought that perhaps Max was going to say something about Ash and Misty. Max stayed quiet. May was about to ask her little brother what was wrong, but suddenly, she didn't seem to have the courage to break the silence. It seemed that no one wanted to do that, either. Even Togepi didn't chirp. Then, out of the blue, Pikachu's ears stuck straight up in the air, his eyes widened enormously, and his fur stood on end. A look of fear and horror crossed his face, and suddenly, with an apprehensive cry of alarm, he flew in great bounds across the snow that separated him from the rest of the group and hugged onto Max's leg tightly when he got there. Glancing down at Pikachu trying to look small and insignificant, the stationary Max knew that Pikachu had felt the same presence nearby as he had. After glancing around the cavern again, Max whispered, "I… I think… we're not… alone." He paused, then whispered lower, "Something else is here."

The souls of Ash and Misty heard what Max said as they glided down to float next to their living friends. "Yes!" Ash choked out desperately, though knowing that they wouldn't be able to hear him, just as Jesse and James hadn't heard them, "Yes! Something else is here! It's us! It's Ash and Misty! We're here!" Pikachu gave a long low whine, as if he knew that the 'something else' had spoken, and his tiny claws sunk into Max's leg so hard that Max had to bite his lip so as to not cry out.

"Ugh…" May muttered fearfully to herself at Pikachu's whine, and sidestepped so that she was closer to the older protective Brock. It was then that Misty noticed whom May was holding. May, the girl that Misty knew was an absolute threat, was clutching tightly but gently onto Misty's little baby, her precious Togepi. Misty felt her temper rising immediately. She had the sudden urge to kick May in the leg, for the girl would have no idea that Misty had done it, but she didn't want to have to explain that vicious action to her soulmate, who certainly would know who had done it. What was worse, Misty considered angrily, was that Togepi didn't seem to mind that May was carrying her, and not Misty.

Ash glanced over at Misty and saw her angry glare directed at May. He recognized immediately that it was because May was holding Togepi, remembering his conversation with Misty on the crystalfall before his confession. Ash still didn't understand why Misty seemed to dislike May so much, but understanding that was for another time and place. "Mist?" Ash called softly, and Misty twitched in surprise and turned to him swiftly. "How should we get their attention, if we aren't going to pick them up like we did Team Rocket?" Misty frowned thoughtfully, and shrugged, still thinking.

"Maybe…" Brock was whispering quietly to May and Max, trying not to disturb whatever could be out there, "…we should get out some of our Pokémon out, in case we need, uh…" he glanced at May's highly fretful face, "…a bit of, uh, protection. Just in case." Max nodded, and May gulped, but still, she nodded in acquiescence herself. Brock fingered his five Pokéballs, wondering which would be the best against a strange phantom. May fingered her two Pokéballs and Misty's five, wondering whether just to send all seven of them out against a strange phantom, or run screaming back down the cavern hallway. Max fingered Poochyena's Pokéball and Ash's four, wondering which of Ash's Pokémon were in which, for he had forgotten already.

"Uh, Brock," Max whispered out of the side of his mouth, not looking at the Pokémon breeder, "which is which?" He gestured at Ash's belt, which hung loosely from his waist, at Ash's four Pokéballs.

"Treecko, Bayleef, Noctowl, then Corphish," Brock reminded him quickly in a whisper, "and don't forget you have Pikachu, too." Pikachu whined, wishing he really had been forgotten. Despite the precautions taken by the group in the form of whispering, Ash and Misty still heard every word that they had said.

"Oh, no…" the soul Misty mumbled anxiously, then glanced over at Ash, wide-eyed, "I hope they d- don't really s- set our own Pokémon on us!"

"Well, I d- don't think our Pokémon would be able to s- s- see us, either, though they m- might sense us, if they can't."

"Yeah, I guess n- n- not. Only Ghost- types can see other g- g- ghosts."

Ash nodded. "That's r- right. Except for, you know…" There was a pause as Ash's eyes suddenly grew wide in thought, then in surprised bliss. "…THAT'S IT!"

"…All right," May was breathing in short, small gasps as she held the seven Pokéballs in one hand and Togepi in her other arm. Pikachu had now gone to May to hide behind her. May's voice had gone squeaky. "… All right… Whenever you're ready, Brock… Any time…"

"Okay," Brock answered quietly, not completely confident himself, gathering his Pokéballs into his hand. Max, Poochyena's Pokéball already in hand, was plucking the Pokéballs one by one off of Ash's belt when he felt something strange while reaching for the third Pokéball. Something didn't exactly feel right. Max glanced down innocently at the Pokéball he had been reaching for, and felt his heart suddenly start to race. The Pokéball wasn't attached to the belt; it was floating in midair, not even close to the belt, without any visible support. The prickly feeling ran across Max's skin again, and a look of disbelieving fear came over his face. After trembling in his spot for a moment, Max suddenly let out a scream and dashed away from where the Pokéball was floating.

"GHOSTS!" he yelped, forgetting that he wasn't sure if he believed in ghosts or not, as Brock and May gasped in fear upon seeing the floating red-and-white sphere. Max immediately took cover behind his sister, joining Pikachu, scattering snow everywhere as he tried to run fast through the thick drifts. May glanced around in horror, not looking for whatever was holding the Pokéball, but looking for a place to hide. Brock braced himself, his heart pounding faster than he could ever remember. He had a very troubled thought. _Is this… the Haunter that Jesse and James said was down here?_

"Ash," Misty frowned in confusion as she floated over to him. Ash was holding onto the Pokéball he had taken off of the belt around Max's waist, one of his own Pokéballs. He was holding it tightly in both hands, glancing down at it in mixed hope and desperation. "Ash," Misty repeated, holding onto Ash's right arm, "I thought we weren't going to scare them."

"This," Ash muttered without glancing at her, gesturing with the Pokéball, "could be our one shot. It could be our last hope." He glanced up at the ghost girl, hanging onto his arm trustingly, and prayed that his obscure idea would work _…for her sake, not mine…_ Suddenly, with a great ghostly throw, Ash flung the Pokéball high into the air. Brock, May, and Max watching in alarmed astonishment as the Pokéball stopped levitating and seemingly careened high into the air without any force behind it. At the arching peak of the Pokéball's path, the sphere suddenly burst open on its hinges, letting out a flash of light that slowly materialized into a Pokémon. The Pokéball fell down towards the ground, and the ghost Ash caught it, throwing to Max in the same movement. The young boy let out another yelp as the missile headed towards him for no visible reason, but caught it in the nick of time just the same. Max glanced up, along with his sister and Brock, at the Pokémon hovering in the air above their heads.

"Noctowl?" the three standing stupefied in the snow questioned as one. The Shiny Owl Pokémon looked as confused as Brock, May, and Max to be out of his Pokéball, especially in a strange snowy cathedral-arched cavern. He flapped his wings uncertainly, glancing up, down, and around at the new setting. He hooted quietly, and spiraled down a bit closer to the snow-covered floor, away from the threatening stalactites.

Misty was wondering the same thing as the rest of the group until she heard Ash began to shout an attack command at Noctowl repeatedly. Of course, Ash knew that Noctowl couldn't hear him, but he hoped desperately that the Owl would get the message one way or another. Misty realized what Ash's plan had been as Ash yelled, "NOCTOWL! FORESIGHT! FORESIGHT, NOCTOWL! FORSIGHT, FORESIGHT, FORESIGHT!"

"Of course," Misty muttered quietly to herself, "Noctowl's Foresight attack. It helps him identify an unknown opponent, AND makes a Ghost- type unable to disappear… or… makes a ghost appear if you can't see it!" Misty's eyes grew wide in hope. _Ash may have just found the perfect way to help us out! Oh, Ho-oh… I hope Foresight works on people-ghosts, too! _

"Why would …something let one of our Pokémon out?" Brock questioned himself in a whisper, "Or why did it let Noctowl out specifically? How did it know that Noctowl was in that Pokéball? Why?"

Max peeked out from around May's violently trembling legs, and whined, "Ghosts! Oh, why does it have to be ghosts! We can't see ghosts, so why does it always have to be ghosts!"

"That's… IT!" Brock said suddenly. It most certainly had to be a ghost, Brock now believed, though he wasn't sure if it could be this Haunter he was warned of. He wasn't sure why it would have let out Noctowl, either, but he did know what he should do since whatever it was had. "Noctowl!" Brock shouted up at the Shiny Pokémon. The bird glanced over at the breeder, very willing to listen to anyone, as he didn't know what to do himself. "Use your Foresight attack on the cavern area in front of us!"

"Yes!" Ash shouted triumphantly. He floated up into the area where Brock had called for Noctowl's attack to be aimed and hovered there. Misty immediately glided up beside him, and they smiled at each other, nervous and hopeful that this would work.

Noctowl nodded obediently to Brock's order, then concentrating hard, he focused his pupils upon his target area and his eyes lit up bright red. Wide red beams of light shot from Noctowl's eyes and they swept the height and width of the cavern slowly, coating it in an eerie glow.

"Of course!" Max muttered, irritated at himself, "I should have known to have one of our Pokémon try Foresight!"

"Uh," May whispered, taking her eyes away from the glowing scene only a moment to glance at her brother, "…What's Foresight?"

Brock watched intently, and after a few very long moments, two smudges seemed to appear in the red light, growing slowly clearer. Seeing that his attack was getting back some results, Noctowl focused harder on his attack than he ever had before. Ash felt a strange feeling come over his soul as the red aura swept over him. He hadn't been able to feel cold, hunger, or pain since he had last been in his body (though he had definitely felt his kiss with Misty, since she was a ghost, too), but now he started to feel something that, if Ash remembered correctly, could just possibly be heat, or a slight warm sensation. Misty felt this, too, and like Ash, she also began to feel a very slight pull on her soul towards the ground, a very minute bit of the work of gravity.

The group on the ground watched in a strange kind of fascination as the two smudges began to take shape. Slowly, it was visible to Brock, May, Max, Pikachu, and Togepi (the latter of whom didn't really get what was going on) that the two smudges each had two arms, two legs, and a head: human forms. "Foresight," Max whispered to May, who had already forgotten her question, "basically makes ghosts, which are invisible, visible."

As the two human forms, floating high in the air, sharpened, May began to feel more afraid. Soon, it was very apparent that the two forms must be ghosts, and when this certainty was reached for the coordinator, she could stand still no longer. May ran for it, taking cover behind Brock, shrieking, "…I SEE DEAD PEOPLE!" Max and Pikachu were left out in the open, so they quickly mimicked May and dove behind Brock for protection. Brock chucked nervously and desperately. Both literally and figuratively, he thought, _I'm sure glad my whole group is here to, uh… back me up. Guess it's too bad they don't stand beside me, then. _

Noctowl could not hold his attack any longer. The red aura disappeared, and the bird flapped his wings rigidly and hooted in exhaustion. He landed awkwardly in the snow, and sunk down a few inches into the cold, unpleasant flurries. Despite the disappearance of the red light, Foresight's effects were still working their magic upon the souls of Ash and Misty. May, holding Togepi, peeked out cautiously at the appearing ghosts on one side of Brock, and Max and Pikachu peeked out from around Brock's other side.

Their outlines were solidly visible, but the details of Ash and Misty's body came last. First, the details of their shoes appeared, then their legs and jeans, then their shirts, and finally, their faces and hair. The details spread up their soul bodies like the fine onyx pigment of calligraphy inked from bottom to top. Ash had closed his eyes as he felt the aura warm him and weigh him down. He opened them promptly as new sensations came upon his soul as their visible details completed. Now, the warmth disappeared, replaced by the very faintest traces of the chill that comes of overexposure to frigid snow. Also, Ash began to feel the slightest twinge of what must be pain in his chest. When Ash thought over all he had done that day, when he had been in his body, he realized the pain must be from the Night Shade attack that Haunter had used on him to knock him unconscious and steal his soul away. Out of the corner of his eye, Ash saw Misty gently put a hand to the gash that Haunter's missile stalactite had cut into her skin to knock her unconscious before he had attacked Ash. It obviously had given off the slightest twinge of a painful shock, too.

Slowly, Ash glanced down at the rest of his traveling party standing in the snowy banks below, and felt himself become self-conscious, almost embarrassed. Though it had only been a little while (hopefully less than an hour) since he become invisible to most of the world, Ash felt strange that he could now be seen and gazed upon. Misty felt strange to be seen, too, and after a moment, wondered fretfully if any of the group had noticed that Ash wasn't the one wearing his vest.

Brock felt that his heart had just stopped, though it beat on, regardless of his numbing shock. It did quicken its thumping, however, as the sight of the pale apparitions of his lost friends met his dismal eyes. The two translucent human forms, floating over the snow, were most certainly Ash and Misty in every aspect and detail. Seeing them, however, after searching for them for a whole night and day, only chilled Brock's rapidly beating heart more than it already had been, because they were not the people he knew and cared about. They were, as James had already warned, ghosts…

May was stunned so silent that she almost forgot to breathe. _It's impossible…_ she thought bleakly to herself, holding tight onto Brock's arm with the hand that wasn't holding Togepi, _… It's impossible that they could be… ghosts… No! They can't be! They just can't! They… they… aren't allowed to die! They can't yet! There's too many things that they haven't done! Ash hasn't helped my brother catch a Pokémon yet, and hasn't helped me learn all I can learn from him about how to be partners with Pokémon! I need to tell Misty that I'm not in love with her Ash, 'cause she hasn't even become my friend yet, and there is so much that we haven't done together! This… this just can't be!_

Max didn't think at all, for the first few seconds. There is nothing to think, after all, until a person can register in their mind that something they don't want to believe is true. When his mind finally gave in to the facts that seemed to be staring him right in the face, he still wasn't able to think clearly, for too many thoughts rushed into his head at one time to be able to think logically. He watched dazedly, both hands gripping tightly onto Brock's vest, as the Ash ghost smiled, almost apologetically, and waved at them slightly, mouthing the word, "Hi." The Misty ghost smiled faintly, too, glancing over at the Ash ghost, then back at the group in the snow, her hands clasped together in front of her.

Ash and Misty, after the strange novelty of ghostly visibility wore off a bit, swiftly realized that their appearance had not excited their friends as they had somewhat believed that it would. The three humans and Pikachu all wore expressions of surprise and fear, but most of all, of sorrow and grief. Eyes wide, eyebrows furrowed, and mouth hung open in dumb shock, the living people and creatures stared up, silent and motionless, at the two ghosts floating in front of them.

Suddenly, Max broke down into a frightened sob. His knees buckled weakly underneath him and he slid down so his knees were on the ground. He gripped Brock's pants leg tightly, leaning against him for support as his caramel eyes began to trickle out silent tears like a leaky faucet. Pikachu, who had been standing just in front of Max, backed up next to the young boy and gripped the leg of Max's own dark brown shorts in horrified distress, pulling himself close in order to gain and provide as much frail comfort as he could. Abruptly, Max let out another great sob, burying his head in Pikachu's golden fur, and wailed in a muffled voice, "They're dead! They really are dead! Oh, they're dead!"

In a quiet, desperate murmur, May whispered, "Oh my Ho-Oh. Oh my Ho-Oh, no. Oh, my Ho-Oh," a phrase that she had intentionally picked up from Misty. She felt weak in the knees, too, and had to lean heavily against Brock to remain standing. She felt her sapphire eyes misting over, and buried her face in Brock's arm. Brock simply stared up at the ghosts, the ghosts of his two oldest friends, and shook his head slightly, disbelieving. Then he became still, as his two youngest friends sobbed around him, and watched the faces of the ghosts become perplexed and almost frightened themselves. Brock had never felt comfortable with the idea of ghosts, for he had experienced some bad things involving ghosts in the past, but nevertheless, these were ghosts of Ash and Misty, and nothing to be uncomfortable with. So he spoke to them, for none of the others had done so yet.

"…Ash? …Misty?" Both of them looked at Brock straight in the eyes as he muttered their names, obviously confused as to why the others were crying. "…you two… you're… you're… you're… dead…" As his choked voice trailed off, he saw the confusion on their faces grow more. Then, Ash did something that almost made Brock's heart stop again: he shook his head negatively. After a very long pause, Brock whispered, "…What?" and Ash shook his head again, Misty joining him this time. "…But you're… ghosts…" Ash nodded reluctantly. "…So… you're dead…" Misty shook her head so fast that it made her short loose hair fly about in an ethereal breeze. "…You're …alive?" Both instantly nodded. Brock felt a bit of his numbness go away, as he stared into the two pairs of widened soul eyes. They certainly would not say they were alive unless they really were. They wouldn't lie.

Neither May nor Max, nor Pikachu or Togepi (the latter of whom still didn't understand what was going on) had seen or really heard Brock's 'conversation' with the souls of Ash and Misty. Suddenly, Brock shook both of the pairs that were hanging tightly onto him. "You guys! May, Max, Pikachu! Didn't you see? They said that they aren't dead! Ash and Misty said they're alive!" All four instantly stared up in high shock at the two floating souls.

"…But," Max managed to choke out, squinting at the two ghosts through a waterfall of tears, "…they're ghosts… so they can't be alive." Ash shook his head. "…But… how can that be?"

Ash looked as if he was about to try to explain, when Misty muttered to him, "Ash, we can't try to do that now. We'll have to tell them later, when we get out of this mess." Ash turned back to Max, and instead, shrugged.

"So… you're really alive?" May whispered hopefully. Ash nodded, wondering mildly what it would take to get the fact through all of their heads, and May smiled so gleefully that Misty couldn't help grinning the tiniest bit that the younger girl would be so glad to hear such news. Then, Misty frowned. _…Well, of course, maybe she's just glad that Ash may be still alive! Oooo, I just can't stand her! What am I going to do?_

"I… I don't believe it," Max marveled aloud, vigorously wiping away tears from under his glasses lenses, but it sounded very much as if he did want to believe it. He quickly stood up, and Pikachu jumped onto Max's shoulder.

The electric mouse had such a mix of surprise and sadness and hope on his face that it made his ghostly master laugh softly. Suddenly, a look of understanding came across his little sweet face. "Pika Pi! Pikachupi!" he called out Ash and Misty's names excitedly. Ash realized that Pikachu must have guessed what had happened to them for them to be ghosts but be alive. After all, Pikachu had experienced the same thing, along with Ash, in Lavender Town. From May's arms, Togepi trilled, and held out her tiny hands for Misty, giving Misty a bit of smug pleasure.

Brock could tell that the entire group now believed that Ash and Misty were alive, but he didn't understand how they could be. "…But Ash, Misty, how can you be alive? We met Jesse and James from Team Rocket, and they said that they had seen your… dead bodies. They said that a… that a Haunter had… murdered you…" Both ghosts' eyes widened, and they slowly nodded. Brock felt a bit more fearful than before. _A Pokémon… that really wants to kill someone?_

"…Ash!" Misty said quickly, turning to him, "We might not have much time left! We have to take them down to the last cavern! …NOW!" Ash nodded firmly.

"Then, what did this Haunter do to make you ghosts, but alive? Rip your souls out of your bodies or something?" Max grumbled in bewilderment. Both Ash and Misty nodded quickly, and Pikachu nodded, too. Max was quite surprised that his first suggestion must have been right, and a bit more surprised that Pikachu seemed to know what had happened, too. From the strange look that May sent him, she was obviously baffled and skeptical. "It could happen, May! Ghost- types, along with Dark- types and Psychic- types, have always been the most mysterious Pokémon in the world. No one knows all of the things that those types of Pokémon can do, especially the creepy Ghost- types, like a Haunter!" The look on Brock's face made it clear that he had decided to believe the ghosts. After all, Ash just never really died, and he certainly wouldn't let Misty die, Brock knew for sure.

Suddenly, the group on the ground noticed that Ash and Misty were looking very flustered and anxious. Ash was waving his hand wildly, gesturing towards that area of the snow cavern that the living group hadn't yet seen. Misty tapped her wrist where a watch would be, if she wore one. It was obvious that they wanted to go on down the cavern, and do so quickly. "Where are we going?" Brock asked, "Jesse and James said that your… bodies were in 'the last cavern' or something. Are we going there?" Ash and Misty nodded.

"What about that Haunter?" Max questioned loudly. With a small smile, Misty jabbed a fist into an open palm aggressively, just like her normal hostile self. "Great!" Max had a determined, enthusiastic, and fierce look on his face, "Let me at that fiend! NOBODY messes with MY friends! I'll take 'em down!" He grabbed a Pokéball out, enlarged it, and threw it into the air. "Let's go! Poochyena!" The wolf pup appeared in the snow, but he almost disappeared underneath the flurries. Only the tips of his ears were showing at first. "Come on, Poochy! Let's go kick a Ghost- type's butt!" Poochyena leaped up, barking enthusiastically, then disappeared back down into the snow. Returning the slightly worn-out Noctowl to his Pokéball, Max started trudging quickly through the snowdrifts towards Ash and Misty, Pikachu leaping down into the snow with Poochyena and leaping through the snowdrifts with the pup.

"But you know," May shouted up to Max following the ghosts of Ash and Misty, who were turned around and gliding down the hallway, "that you're not really allowed to battle! You're not a trainer yet!"

"We're going to need Poochyena's help if we end up battling a Haunter," Brock told May quickly, "Dark- types are the only type that are very strong against Ghost- types, and Max's Pokémon is the only Dark- type that any of us have, even if he is at a pretty low level. As far as official battling goes, he really shouldn't or he could get in trouble, but battling down here against a deadly Pokémon, well…" Brock shrugged.

May shook her head in slight exasperation. "He does always get away with things that I never could," she muttered resentfully, then started trudging through the snow banks, Brock following at her heels.

The progress that the group made in the first two minutes was horribly slow compared to the rate that Jesse and James had gone at. Because May and Max were both wearing shorts, the coldness of the cavern affected how fast they could move, and both Team Rocket members had been wearing long sleeves and boots (plus, they had the incentive of getting away from a batty Sneasel, which was, at this time, no where to be found as it was taking a nap in some fissure in the cavern wall). Floating along with Ash in front of the group, Misty glanced back at the plodding going on behind them, and muttered emotionally to her ghostly partner, "Ash? What if… what if… we really do die, Ash?"

Ash looked over at her and smiled weakly. The idea had also been in his mind. Yet again, both he and Misty tried to silently console themselves in the fact that Ash had always come out of every scrape alive, and that he and Misty would do it once more (and unbeknownst to them, their traveling partners were thinking the same thing, too). However, something made him wonder if this time could just possibly not work the same way. "Well," Ash said slowly, on a lighter note, "I guess… we'll just be… dead. Hey, Mist, do 'ya reckon they'd let ghosts compete in the Hoenn League? I only need three more badges, you know."

"ASH!" Misty wailed, at Ash's kooky statement, "That's not even funny!"

In a more serious tone, Ash looked her in the eyes and muttered, "But what ever does happen, Mist, I'm always going to be here for you. I'll always be with you."

Misty couldn't help a small sentimental smile at Ash's serious but gratifying words. " 'Til death do us part'?" she joked slightly, taking her turn to make a jab at the strange situation they were in.

"I don't reckon death could do that to us, Misty," Ash said, in a wise tone that sounded very much like Max, and reached over to grab her hand for a moment. "I reckon that… death is what brought us together, so how could it possibly do the opposite now?"

"Thank you, Ash," is all that Misty knew to say. She squeezed his hand, then let it go. Their friends following them through the snow hadn't seen the affectionate handclasp, and Misty kind of wanted to keep it that way. If no one had yet given it a thought that Misty was wearing Ash's vest, Misty didn't want to draw attention to her and Ash's new relationship until such was the proper time. Facing certain death, unless the incessant sands of time's hourglass (and Haunter for that matter) were defeated, is not a good time to tell your friends that you and your best friend are now a couple.

Ash and Misty hurriedly conducted their group down the first cavern hallway until they reached the hole in the snow that led to the second cavern. After being assured by the ghosts' rough sign language that snow would cushion them if they jumped through it, Brock, Max (holding Pikachu and Poochyena), and May (holding Togepi) went down it bravely, and the two ghosts flew through the hole themselves.

It was the fourth time that Ash and Misty had been in this second cavern, the one with the only landmark being Sableye's rhyming warning scratched high on the wall, and so they weren't interested in taking their time. The journey through the second cavern was completely uneventful and silent as the ghosts rushed the rescue team as fast as the people and Pokémon's weary legs could move through such deep white flurries. Brock, May, and Max were getting increasingly fatigued. They had wandered around all day, then ran to catch Team Rocket, and now they were having to hurry through snow. Though they didn't know why they had to hurry to the 'last cavern' that Ash and Misty were taking them to, they knew that it must be important, so the group managed as best as they could.

The group on the ground only just recognized that something must be up on the wall, as they past the carved poem, for Ash and Misty didn't stop their hastening of the group for a moment. Soon, though not soon enough for Ash and Misty's liking, the group was at the edge of the hole that led to the third cavern. Ash, although he had been mostly optimistic when he had last talked to Misty, was now starting to feel what he thought was realistic, though he didn't give up, for Misty's sake. _There's no way… there is just no way… not after all of the time that Mist and I spent on the crystalfall… not after all of the time getting Brock and May and Max to follow us… not after Sableye said we only had an inch or so amount of time left… We must be long gone… we must be dead… But how will I know? …Will I be able to feel myself become… dead? …Will Misty and I be ghosts forever …or will we just …fade away …like old memories?_

Being valiant yet again, the rescue group gave a great leapt of faith down the hole, and then, they were in the third cavern, the grandest of them all. With its silver marble walls and deep snow down below the cliff they had landed on, the six pairs of eyes that were new to this stretch of the cavern gazed in wonder at the circular cavern, but only for a moment as they were prodded towards the edge of the cliff to their left. The group was surprised to see a long rock slide that ran halfway around the circumference of the cavern, but they were even more surprised when Ash and Misty pushed them down it with only a little warning. Screams echoed across the wide cavern as the grounded group slid rapidly down the slide. The pile that ended up at the bottom of the slide would have been more amusing if the situation had been different; Brock ended up on the bottom with May crushing him, Max crushing his sister, Poochyena sprawled atop his owner, Pikachu landed on top of the wolf pup, and Togepi sitting innocently at the very top, like the cap on a pyramid. The ghosts quickly floating down to the group as the pile untangled itself. It was necessary for the group to stop to breathe, and Ash and Misty waited anxiously for them to continue. As they paused briefly, May glanced across the cavern and saw a large, smooth rock that was wedged against the silvery wall, and something about it made her shutter.

After the moment for pausing had past, Brock led the group, with May holding Togepi again behind him and Max walking alongside Poochyena and Pikachu behind her, as Ash and Misty directed them towards the far side of the cavern. The group continued to stay silent, as thoughts wouldn't come as their energy was focused on following the two ghosts in front. Off to the left, the ghosts, people, and Pokémon followed the snowy tunnel that branched off from the main third cavern. The ones that were walking slowly began to notice that the snow was tapering off. Just as they came to that revelation, a new one hit them as they rounded a bend in the passage.

"What on Earth…" Brock whispered, as he and his friends suddenly found that they were facing a long stretch of ice that replaced the snow as a floor. Max and May found themselves muttering such quiet exclamations as "wow" and "oh, my Ho-Oh" as they gazed in wonder at the milky silver sheet. Poochyena just whined. Ash and Misty vigorously motioned for the three people and three Pokémon to continue through the tunnel, and Brock asked quickly, "Misty, is this ice really thick enough to be safe? Did you and Ash cross over on this?" Misty quickly nodded, and Brock dared to step out onto the slick surface.

The scene that resulted wasn't a pretty one. Brock ended up hanging tightly onto a stalagmite as he lay face down on the ice. Max ended up right in the middle of a sparse patch of ice and was standing there in a frozen position, knowing he would fall down if he made the smallest movement. Pikachu held quiveringly onto the top of Max's head, causing Max's black hair to once more cover his face. Poochyena was making all of the movements of running fast, but due to the nature of the ice, was running hard in one place and panting heavily at his futile effort. May was still standing but she was wobbling back and forth dangerously. Ash floated out to rescue Max first, as the boy was obviously frightened to stir even the littlest amount to get his hair out of his face. Togepi chirped in fright in May's tight hold as May's feet suddenly slipped out from under her. May yelled out in fright and closed her sapphire eyes as she felt herself falling down backwards, but suddenly, her descent stopped. May slowly opened her eyes and found that she was looking up in the surprised face of the ghost of Misty.

At first, Misty didn't know why she had decided to catch May under her arms before the girl could fall. _It's just because she's holding Togepi, and I don't want my baby to get hurt, _Misty thought savagely as she stared straight down at May's face, which looked upside down to her. The fleeting moment of both girls' eyes staring into the others ceased, and Misty pushed May over to a stalagmite. May quickly grabbed the stalagmite with her free hand and watched Misty watching Ash, who was helping Max over to a stalagmite. May felt a profound sorrow come over her, as she could still see the hateful look Misty had just given her. She didn't want it to be like this. She wanted to be friends. May remembered all that she wanted to tell Misty so that Misty wouldn't hate her, and decided that now had to be the time to say it, before any other bizarre thing could happen.

"Hey, Misty," May whispered, not looking at the girl who was floating at her side, but staring off into space the way she did when dreaming or did just to irritate her brother for fun. Misty's head whirled around to stare at May guardedly. May paused to adjust Togepi in her arm before continuing in a casual voice, "Don't take this the wrong way, because I don't want you to be a ghost forever, but if you are, I bet… I bet it'll be a lot better since Ash would be with you, huh?"

Misty stared at May, and wondered what on Earth had caused May to say what she just had said. _She better not be saying what I think she's saying…_ Misty thought, feeling anger pulsating through her soul, as she figured May was getting ready to say what Misty had feared all day and the day before. However, May was really thinking the exact opposite.

Misty's silent anger, which went unnoticed by May, escalated until suddenly, May said something that made every single little fragment of her pent-up frustration, fear, and hate whoosh out of her like a collapsing bellows. "…I guess… it would be okay if I had to be with Ash as a ghost, but I'd much rather be with my own best friend, because, well, I really like him a lot, well, you know, really I love him…" She paused, seeing the confused and incredulous look on Misty's face out of the corner of her eyes, and slyly added, "…like you feel about… Ash, right?"

Misty continued to stare at May, now totally stunned for two reasons. _…She… knows? _May finally decided it was time to look at Misty. She smiled up at the ghost, ghostly eyes meeting sapphire ones. "Oh, you don't know him, and I never told you about him, did I? I mean, I told Brock, but I didn't tell you, and that's kind of silly, isn't it?" May paused, her eyes glimmering, as she saw a picture of her love in her mind, with his fluffy white hair and beautiful steel gray, almost silver, eyes. She knew she was ranting, and that now wasn't the best time to rant, but she felt adamant that she needed to say all of this to solve her and Misty's 'issue' now, once and for all (and the Ash ghost was still helping Poochyena get over to a stalagmite).

"His name… is Brendan Birch- Professor Birch's nephew, obviously- and oh, I love him so much. He's so clever and can get out of any mess, and loves Pokémon, too. We were only able to be close friends for a year or so because he had to move to Mossdeep City, but that time was some of the best of my life. I'd love to be able for us to travel with him, because he most certainly has to have become a trainer at the same time as me. I just want to see him again. I'm afraid to call him, though, because it's been so long and, well, …he doesn't know how I feel about him." May sighed, her eyes growing dreamy again. "I don't even have his phone number."

Misty stared up at Ash, who was helping Brock stand up, feeling lighter inside than even her ghostly body felt. She almost couldn't believe it, but she did anyway. He was completely hers, for May didn't love Ash at all. She glanced back down at May, who was staring off into space, obviously thinking about her Brendan Birch. _She doesn't even know his phone number_, Misty thought, and something about that fact was extremely heartbreaking. Misty knew what May was feeling, because she had felt the same thing when she had been stuck in Cerulean City, knowing that Ash, oblivious to her feelings for him, was out there somewhere and she couldn't get a hold of him against all of her desire to at least talk to him.

She looked again back up at Ash, who now knew her feelings and would always be with her, and felt very grateful. Then the weight of the situation that they were currently in hit as her eyes and Ash's connected, and they understood what the other was thinking.

They both desperately didn't want to die.

They wanted to live…

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

* * *

It's all coming to a head, isn't it? Well, stay tuned for Chapter 11… because we're headed for the climax! Yippie! Before you go off somewhere to wait, I have a few announcements to make. First, the website isn't ready, but it's getting there (maybe 1/3 done). Second, if you think you know Pokémon more than anyone else in the world, check out this website (before April 2005) to compete to win a trip to Japan to win a Pokémon amusement park: http:emerald. pokemon- games. com/ battle/ emerald/ (just take out all of the spaces in the address). Third, are any of you interested in reading the one-shot short story I wrote for my mom's birthday? It's called 'Let Them Bake Cake'. The story is about Ash and Misty baking a cake for Delia's birthday… and things go TERRIBLY WRONG! It's a comedy, just like The Tennis Racket... So, if you want to read it, just tell me, and I'll think about posting it. I CAN'T WAIT TO READ YOUR REVIEWS! YEA! 

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 10's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter. :)


	11. A World Of Magic At Your Command

Well, everyone, what can I say? 

It's been way over a year. And that sickens me. Because I call myself a writer – ha! (smacking myself over, and over, and over again)

Don't worry, I've already violently abused my ego over this catastrophe of not updating this obviously well-loved novel, but if anyone would like to really do me some damage and absolutely ROAST me, please feel free to do so (if you feel like strangling me, I've found that piano wire is quite the popular weapon these days). …Of course, if you end up liking this chapter, please say so! And I seriously hope you enjoy it. The only thing I can say about the wait is: being a junior in high school sucks. End of story.

I would like to take this time to thank several reviewers for their reviews, which all played a particularly strong role in hauling my lazy butt to my laptop to get this finished: Drac-frst (your review stung! But I'm glad you told me the way it is, because it's true), DemosteneszRivii (your hypnotism worked… eventually), Maverick Hunter Cyros (I do love destiny), Nolaquen265 (you're too sweet!), cepheids (I almost DIED at your review… Sniff, sniff please forgive me! I hope you get to read this! God bless you and keep you safe!), starfairy14s (hee hee), and all of you who told me how good my writing really is (which was good to hear because I was turned down by a prestigious writing workshop class this summer) and told me to get it movin' already! (I should also thank my mom for threatening to take away my internet privileges for a WEEK if I didn't finish it today… and we just got high-speed, too!) I know I've probably lost a lot of my readers because I'm such a _BAKA,_ but I hope that any new reviewers will enjoy this story, too.

Last but not least… Chapter 9's title of "…never gonna stop searching for you…" comes from the song _Comin' To The Rescue_ from the **Pokémon 2000** CD. Congratulations to these readers and reviewers for guessing correctly: Icy-Windbreeze, SulliMike23, ChibiBotan88, Stacee, P.R. Dragonite, Sensational Sista, Mr. Lefty, and Chocopop. 

I will rant no more, and hope everyone enjoys this climactic chapter! BY THE WAY: Because of the long wait, I made this chapter extra long. It is a full NINE PAGES longer than the longest of the other chapters! And now, we continue the story!

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**CHAPTER 11: …A World Of Magic At Your Command…**

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Once the ghosts of Ash and Misty showed Brock, May, and Max how sliding from one stalagmite to the other was the easiest way to get across the icy floor, their progress once more quickened its pace. Brock managed to keep himself steady enough that he didn't fall down as he slid across the ice, and May soon found how much she enjoyed this modified ice skating. She was almost a natural, as Misty was, but she still tried to be extra careful, since she was holding the most fragile of the group's Pokémon in her arms. Max continued to have problems. With Pikachu still on his head and also holding the now ice-wary Poochyena, he couldn't seem to get enough momentum to travel across and kept sliding to a stop in the middle of the ice.

In the next cavern, Ash and Misty both smiled slightly upon seeing the eyes of the three people and three Pokémon light up at the sight of the huge sparkling crystalfall. After all, the multicolored crystals, all arranged in their descending pattern, were a magnificent sight to behold. The two souls navigated their group right beside the crystalfall on the way to the next cavern because they couldn't risk stopping and wasting any more precious time, but Ash and Misty wanted to give them a chance to see what the millions of colors were.

Brock silently gazed at the crystalfall as he slid past on the ice, and let his hand lightly brush an amethyst crystal to see how they felt to the touch. It felt strangely cool but almost tingly warm at the same time. Max practically fell down on the ice as he slid past, and had to grab a hold onto a leaf green crystal in order to stay standing. He, Poochyena, and Pikachu almost crashed anyway as the crystal almost, but not quite, came out of the crystalfall into Max's hand. May's eyes seemed to immediately land on a brilliant silver crystal, high up on the crystalfall where she couldn't reach it. _…Oh, it's so beautiful! And it reminds me of something… of Brendan's eyes! …I wish I could reach it and pull it down and take it with me… but we better keep moving. Ash and Misty seem to need us to hurry._

The next few ice-floored caverns passed by monotonously. To Ash and Misty, the large white-and-silver tunnels seemed to be a lot longer this fifth time that they had traveled it than it had been the other times. Brock, May, and Max could see the ghosts' faces grow increasingly grim in concentrated concern with every passing second. Brock watched as Ash had to continue rescuing Max, and pushing him across to the next stalagmite. He also watched, with great fascination, Misty gliding along behind May, listening as May whispered something or other to her. Brock wondered why Misty wasn't staring at May in hatred like she usually did. …_What's May saying to Misty that's keeping Misty from giving her The Look?_

"…and after that little episode, Dad never let us go into the woods without taking big ol' Vigoroth with us. But it was fun, bringing Vigoroth along, because Brendan just loved that Pokémon so much! …I was kind of glad we had Dad's Pokémon with us, too, 'cause that Pinsir was really scary and we didn't always take a picnic with us to distract wild Pokémon with when we went out to play!" Misty stuck out her tongue in good-natured disgust at the name of a Bug- type, though her ghostly eyes were still lackluster. May softly grinned. In some such way, Misty seemed to be easier to talk to when May wasn't able to hear Misty talk back… at least for now. She just knew that her speech earlier had probably solved the problem that Brock had said that Misty had with her, but May was still dying to know what Misty had thought when she'd implied that Misty had 'hidden feelings' for Ash Ketchum.

Misty floated along nearby as May slid to the next stalagmite, with a quietly chirping Togepi held in the crook of one arm. Somehow, Misty could hardly see May as a threat to her way of life now, even though she had hated her only a short moment ago. May was simply a sweet ten-year-old girl who was perky and loved cute Pokémon and this Brendan Birch she was continuing to tell Misty about. She was, in many ways, quite different from Misty, but also, in many ways, quite the same. One had Fire and Bug Pokémon and had problems with Water- types, and the other had Water Pokémon and had problems with Fire- and (many issues with) Bug- types, but they were both girls in love with a (different) best friend and were on a Pokémon journey together. _Those,_ Misty reasoned, _are enough things in common for us to be friends… especially since she doesn't love Ash! _

May stayed quiet after finishing the tale of one of her favorite little Brendan Birch memories to Misty, because Max suddenly spoke up from where he was, yet again, stuck out in the middle of an icy floor. "Look, you guys. This cavern is getting darker; there's not as much light here as there has been everywhere else down here."

Misty glanced over at Ash, and he glanced over at her. "We're almost there. We better stop them before we get to that ice slope so they don't fall off of it like we did," Ash whispered solemnly. Misty nodded. The group sliding across the ice slowly came to a stop as the two ghosts flew to the front and motioned for them to go no further. They waited quietly as Ash and Misty floated onwards to see how far away they were from the steep slope that came right before the last cavern. It was only about two yards away; no one had noticed that the ice disappeared suddenly, even at that close distance. With a few rough hand signals, Ash and Misty managed to divide the group into four small parts. The two ghosts had almost automatically agreed that they would have to float their friends along as they had done to Jesse and James, but they couldn't take all of them at once. In fact, Ash and Misty seemed to understand this without much conversation between them at all.

Ash carefully grabbed Max under the arms and started to float him down past the slope and Misty did the same with May holding Togepi. "I am so going to be impaled upon one of those stalagmites when I fall," Max fretted darkly as Ash passed him over the spike-studded ice, "and I'm going to be skewered right through… like shish kebab… and I don't really even like shish kebab most of the time…" This dire prediction did not come true, however, as Ash set Max safely on the ice at the bottom of the slope, just as Misty set May and Togepi down next to Max. Max gave his sister a dirty look when she told him that she thought the short trip had been fun. Ash and Misty quickly glided back up to bring the others down. Brock pretended to be brave as Misty picked him up under the arms and glided him down to the others because he felt the same way as Max had. When Ash's ghost gently touched his Electric Pokémon to pick him up, he saw Pikachu's fur bristle slightly and knew that his ethereal touch was obviously frightening. Pikachu managed to ignore his little fear enough to let Ash place him on his translucent shoulder so he could pick up Poochyena and glide them down. Poochyena's eyes stayed wide and his body stayed in a frozen position until he and Pikachu were deposited into Max's lap.

Finally assembled at the bottom of the ice slope studded with sharp stalagmites, Brock, May, and Max saw, through the dimming light, the ghostly faces of the souls of Ash and Misty turn to one another with uncertain hope. "Well," Misty spoke quietly to her soulmate, "now's the moment of truth. Let's go in there and see if our Pokémon can defeat Haunter and we can get back in our bodies, or see if… our hour ran out."

"Yeah," Ash whispered back, "Let's go." They were silent for a moment. "...I'm ready whenever you are, Mist…"

"Let's not waste anymore time, then," Misty said swiftly, her voice strained, and she and Ash motioned for the others to continue down the passage, where the tunnel turned to the left to head into the last cavern. As the others concentrated on getting across the ice, Misty looked up at the other ghost and quickly and desperately added, "…I love you, Ash."

Ash knew why she had reminded him again. She was scared. He was, too, so he whispered back, to reassure her and himself, "I love you, too, Misty." Misty nodded after a moment, at peace, and the two ghosts glided side by side to the front of the group to lead them to Haunter's waiting lair.

With Pikachu on his shoulder and Poochyena in his arms, Max slid across the ice to the next stalagmite, taking care not to get stuck out in the middle and keeping as close to his sister as he could without looking like he might be frightened. The closer they got to the bend in the tunnel, the darker the cavern seemed to be, and this gave Max a bad feeling of forewarning. He was about to speak up when suddenly, the group was at the bend and May and Brock slid through it without any hesitation. Max knew he had to keep going (and Pikachu tried to comfort Max's fear by purring consolingly in his ear), so he followed his sister and his friend bravely. Overhead, the two ghosts flew through the tunnel with silent grace.

With a small gasp of awe from each of the people on the icy floor, the group gazed into the darkened depths of the cavern that only five other humans had ever seen before. The silver walls, with their multitude of tiny crevices and crannies, led their eyes straight to the back of the cavern, across a broken-stalactite-strewn ice floor and over fathomless black water, to where giant holes in the walls were as dark as the dead of night. High above the water glided the tiny shapes of small Shuppet ghosts, their eyes more solemn and their whisperings quieter than any of their own could ever remember. Even so, they smiled, but the smiles were tight and pained. Things in their peaceful home had not been as peaceful for a while as it had been before, and this troubled their little philosophical souls deeply. However, it was not the humans who had come down into their home that had bothered them, so they virtually ignored the new ones that had just come, not deeming them a threat.

"Wow, Shuppets," Max whispered in his quietest voice, instantly recognizing the Pokémon that he had only seen in books. He shivered a bit against the deep cold of the cavern. Ash and Misty, who were floating right above the closely-gathered group, both glanced around to see where their friend Sableye had gotten to, but didn't see him, and strangely enough, didn't see the frowning Shuppet either.

"Hmm, I wonder what those are like," May muttered to herself, thoughtfully staring at the Shuppets, and her hand reached back to pull her Pokédex out. The quick ire look Max sent her made May cancel her action immediately. Togepi gave off the very weakest fearful trill in May's arms, feeling, like the others, that the whispering silence shouldn't be disturbed if at all possible.

"Ash, Misty," Brock whispered up to the two ghosts, "Is this… is this the 'last cavern' that Jesse and James told us about?" The deep underground cavern did, in fact, have a strange sense of finality and closing to it. Max glanced up at the spirits, because this had been the question he was going to ask before. The ghosts of Ash and Misty both stared down at Brock with dull eyes and nodded. Brock stared back out at the cavern.

Max quietly spoke up. "Is this where… that Haunter is?" Ash and Misty nodded again, but were slower in doing so this time. Max nodded to himself, stared questioningly at the giant holes in the back wall, and slowly set Poochyena down on the icy floor next to him. Poochyena looked up at his master and their eyes connected. They both seemed to know what the other was thinking. Pikachu tensed and tightened his grip on Max's shoulder. Just as Max felt, the Dark- type and the Electric- type both felt ready to do battle against this murderous Haunter under the young boy's command.

Only a short moment of surveying the cavern, with the hard ice cracked in some places and the ancient broken icicle-like structures settled on the floor, was enough to conclude that a battle, a terrible struggle, had taken place here, and had happened recently. Brock felt his heart chill again, even though he knew he must believe the ghosts when they said that they were still alive somehow. Jesse had said that Ash and Misty's bodies were lying in the last cavern, but Brock didn't see anything on the floor in front of him but the broken stalactites. He glanced side to side, and then, the terrifying sight of two familiar bodies, motionless and cadaver-like and stretched out on the ice, met his eyes to his far left.

Brock knew immediately that he didn't want May and Max to see what he had just spotted, but it was too late to stop them; they had heard his small strangled gasp, sensed his small shudder, and had looked to see why he had done so. Both May and Max let out small noises of surprise as their eyes met the bodies of their friends and both began to tremble. The bodies' skin had no color to them whatsoever; they were totally white, as if they were albino, and looked even more white next to Ash's black hair and Misty's bright orange. Brock watched May close her eyes securely so she couldn't see the terrible sight, and saw Max grab onto his sister's arm tightly, unable to tear his horrified wide eyes away from the grisly scene. Pikachu began to whimper tearfully on Max's shoulder, Poochyena's pointed ears drooped, and Togepi didn't seem to understand what was going on at all. Brock felt the need to slide over to the two bodies, but as he made a slight motion to do so, the ghosts of Ash and Misty glided down to the ground level from where they had been hovering above and shook their heads from him not to get a closer look. The ghosts both glanced at their bleached bodies on the ice, then at each other. The situation just didn't look in their favor at the moment.

Then, a very faint scratching sound made Brock, May, Max, Pikachu, and Poochyena jump violently in their spots and turn their eyes towards the origin of the noise in apprehension, but made the two ghosts' eyes light up thankfully. "That must be Sableye coming," Ash commented to Misty, and she smiled slightly, as he did, and nodded.

Brock saw the excited looks on Ash and Misty's faces and relaxed slightly. "I think… it's alright," Brock muttered quietly to his group, and noticing how the ghosts had been stimulated by the noise, May, Max, and the Pokémon loosened up a bit. The whole group only had to wait a moment before a figure could be seen coming from behind some stalagmites towards them cautiously across the cracked ice, with sharp violet claws making a tiny clicking sound on the frozen water. It was, in fact, Sableye, walking on all fours, looking healthy and limber but sedate, with the familiar frowning Shuppet a now seemingly staunch fixture floating along near Sableye's left shoulder.

As the two Ghost Pokémon came to a halt in front of the group and the Darkness Pokémon stood up on his two back legs, they gazed at him in wonder. Brock, May, and Max all knew what a Sableye was, as they had met one before, so they all instantly saw how magnificently unique he was, with his extraordinarily long graceful arms and legs. Sableye gazed up at the group silently. He had only noticed the group's arrival when he had felt the slight touch of the edge of a silky skirt on his shoulder and glanced up. After he had figured that sixty minutes had passed from the time that Ash and Misty's souls had been taken out of their bodies, he had lain inert between the two stalagmites, just as he had been doing before, for there was simply nothing else to do. Sableye continued to gaze at the group. It seemed that the new group was able to see the souls somehow, and unlike the 'Team Rocket' that Ash and Misty had brought down into the last cavern to aid them first, the three humans standing in front of him not only looked able to battle, but ready and willing. _…It's too bad, then… that there is nothing that they can do now… Ash and Misty are… gone… forever… just like my master… _

"Hey, Sableye," the ghost of Ash said quickly, and the new arrivals quickly realized that, though they couldn't hear what Ash and Misty said, the Ghost- type Pokémon could. "We brought, uh… better help as soon as we could. These are our friends, Brock, Max, and-"

"There's no time for that now, Ash," Misty quickly put in, and Ash knew she was right. To Sableye, she said, "Where's Haunter? We can battle him now, because we know our own Pokémon are strong enough to beat him if they all work together." _Hmmm… If their other Pokémon are as strong as that Pikachu looks, _Sableye thought, glancing at the powerful Electric- type mouse on Max's shoulder, _they just might… they just might be able to beat HIM… but it would be all for naught! It's too late! Their hour was up quite a while ago… _

"…But… do we… do we have enough time, Sableye?" Ash questioned slowly, feeling numb. Misty felt numb, too. As Misty had said before entering the last cavern, now was the moment of truth. Both were remaining hopeful in their hearts to the end, though in their minds, they just couldn't believe that they would ever get to be in their own bodies again.

Sableye actually didn't know what to say. When they had asked him how much time they had left before, he had been hesitant to say that they only had a few minutes left. Now he had to decide whether or not to tell them that their time had expired long ago. After a moment, Sableye chose… to lie. Sableye shrugged. His gesture to Ash and Misty was made in an off-handed way, as if he wasn't really sure of the answer to their question or that it didn't really matter. He felt absolutely terrible, but he just couldn't tell them. Not in front of their friends. It had taken everything he had inside of him to explain to his master that he was dead, and Sableye simply could not do it again. _They'll figure it out for themselves… _

Ash noticed immediately that Sableye wouldn't meet his eye, and that made Ash terrified. He stayed silent and still as his spirit body floated in one place, mere inches above the cold slick ice. He sensed that Misty, also silent and still, was terrified now, too, and gave her what he hoped was a reassuring glance. She swallowed unnecessary air to calm herself down, and gave her soulmate what she hoped was a tiny reassured smile. Ash tried not to think that Sableye's gesture could mean that the very worst thing that could happen had, indeed, happened. He tried to put it out of his mind. He glanced back at Sableye, who was now staring at the icy floor, and saw that the frowning Shuppet hovering near the Darkness Pokémon's shoulder was staring at Sableye intently, but Sableye hadn't noticed. Something about the image he was watching made Ash unconsciously think that Sableye might not even know that the Shuppet was there.

Brock, May, and Max had been mute and motionless themselves throughout the entire 'silent' exchange between the souls of their friends and the acquaintances of the Ghost Pokémon. They instinctly felt at ease with the Sableye, and with the frowning Shuppet, just as Ash and Misty had. Such an obviously benevolent Pokémon was Sableye, that they felt familiar with him from the start. Max, glancing at the spirits of Ash and Misty, and at the two Pokémon in front of them, figured that their conversation was over, or at least at a standstill. Even though the Sableye was looking at the icy floor now, Max decided that it was time to speak up. "Um, uh… Mr. Sableye, sir," Max whispered cautiously, sensing that the Pokémon deserved high respect, "could you… do you know… where that Haunter is that hurt my friends," Max remembered his hypothesis on how Ash and Misty had become ghosts, "…or stole their souls… out of their bodies?"

Sableye glanced up at the boy sharply and stared into the caramel eyes gazing back at him from behind the glasses' lenses. He was surprised somewhat by the boy's comments. No one had ever spoken to Sableye with that much reverence, though he had been treated like an equal and a best friend by his deceased master. The Darkness Pokémon didn't feel that he should be treated so well, not after he failed to save Ash and Misty, but Sableye felt honored by being called 'sir' just the same. He was also somewhat surprised at first how much the boy (he believed that Ash had referred to him as 'Max') seemed to know about what was going on; this Max obviously knew that a Haunter was responsible for what had happened to Ash and Misty, and also seemed to have an idea about just what had happened. Perhaps they had heard what was going on from that Team Rocket that had run off and not come back.

"We're here to stop that Haunter," Brock spoke up, his voice solemn and gruff, "and to save Ash and Misty. We can't hear what they're saying, but they were able to communicate to us that they aren't dead, even though…"

"…even though they seem dead, 'cause they're ghosts and all," May finished Brock's trailed-off comment. She glanced at the ghostly Misty out of the corner of her eye, and saw Misty glancing back at her. Misty nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

"We're here to battle, and we have really strong Pokémon to battle that Haunter with, too," Max added, ferocity clearly on his face. The Pikachu nodded from Max's shoulder, his eyes connecting for a moment with the Dark- and Ghost- type Pokémon they were talking to. Sableye already knew most of the things they had just told him, since Ash and Misty had already explained it, but he let them explain anyway. He knew they needed to tell him so they would be assured that he understood their mission. Sableye nodded slightly in response. "So, do you know where that Haunter is?" Max repeated his question quickly.

Sableye was determined not to let them start a fight with Haunter. It would not accomplish what they hoped to achieve, but he felt they at least deserved an answer to the last question before he sent them away. Sableye nodded again, with a tiny bit more resolve, and the rescue party could sense how deep the Pokémon understood and took in everything they were saying. To answer Max's question, Sableye turned slightly to his right (he still didn't catch sight of the frowning Shuppet hovering by his left shoulder) and pointed with a sharp claw straight at the giant dark hole directly in the center of the back wall. Their eyes immediately shifting to where Sableye was pointing, Brock, May, and Max tensed as they stared into the pitch-black orifice, as if the Haunter was going to come out right on cue. A moment passed, and nothing appeared.

"So he's still in there?" Ash muttered, his tone almost brusque. He stared at the hole, his eyes narrowed. The intense anger he had felt at Haunter earlier, when he had floated up to block the Ghost- type from attacking Jesse and James, had resurfaced to become his highest emotion. He had even more reason to be mad at the lavender-skinned Pokémon now, because Haunter hadn't simply attacked his best friend; he had now attacked and injured his girlfriend, his soulmate… _his_ Misty.

The violet Dark- and Ghost- type could see how intently the three humans, the two souls, and the Pikachu were staring at the hole. For a second, he thought he felt the slight brush of something silky on his shoulder, but he didn't glance up and forgot about the feeling a second later. He had suddenly felt all of his bleakness and weariness turn to a sort of panicked horror. He stared down at his foggy reflection in the ice, his mouth opened slightly in incredulity. _…Oh, great job, Sableye… You keep making things worse… Isn't it bad enough that you, your master's first and only Pokémon, couldn't save your master from death by another Pokémon? …Isn't it bad enough that you couldn't stop two other young, innocent trainers from being murdered by that Pokémon? Now, you go and screw up again… you tell three more innocent trainers where they can find their own deaths, all because you're too weak to explain how the situation is already hopeless… You keep making mistakes, Sableye… so many mistakes… mistakes you can't take back now… _

Sableye could hear, as if from a great distance, the girl from the rescue party asking the older boy, the one Ash had called Brock, if they should go closer to the hole in the wall to investigate, even though it looked rather dangerous because of the cracks in the ice floor made by the impact of the fallen stalactites. Sableye began to quiver in his spot, still unaware of the floating ghost hovering by his left shoulder. _…Stop making mistakes, Sableye… stop making mistakes… _Suddenly, Sableye jerked his gaze up from the ice to observe the cavern in front of him: the two white bodies lying on the ice off to the side, the souls from those bodies hovering just above the ice, the three living people discussing how to get the Haunter to come out of his den, the solemn Pikachu, the sober Poochyena, the clueless baby Togepi. _Think it through… there's only one thing that can be done now… the only thing you've done that hasn't been a mistake, as far as I know… _

Brock, May, and Max's attention was suddenly caught by a sharp movement. Their eyes immediately focused on the Sableye, whose hexagonal eyes were turned their direction but stared almost sightlessly. He made the sharp movement with his left arm again, just missing the unobserved frowning Shuppet, whose gentle tap with its skirt edge hadn't been detected by the Darkness Pokémon in that instant. Max managed to mutter a low, confused, "huh?" just before Sableye let out a strangled cry.

"GO! …GO!" Sableye shouted, violently shooing them away again. His shoulders were slouched and his breathing was heavy. His raspy voice cracked even more. The Pokémon was tired of sending people away, even for their own good. He was tired of everything. Everything hurt too much.

Even the rescue party did not have as surprised a look on their faces as Ash and Misty's faces did. The two ghosts' thoughts were one and the same: _…Why would Sableye send us away now?_ As Sableye had been the one to send them off to get help, not just once but twice, it made no sense for him to demand that they leave unless the Haunter was baring down on them again, and the lavender Ghost- type had not appeared out of his hole in the back wall yet. As Sableye screamed and shooed at them, fear as both had never known crept up on them and had the pair in its terrifying grasp.

Brock, May, Max, Pikachu, and Poochyena all gazed at each other in confusion. At Brock's signal, they all cautiously turned their backs on the giant hole in the wall and slowly slid across the ice to a stalagmite closer to the exit. None of them thought for a second that Sableye intended for them to leave the cavern completely. They simply thought that Sableye wanted them to stand further away from the dark, frigid waters at the end of the cavern; it would truly be deadly to fall into something that cold in a place so far away from any outside help. The pale blue souls of Ash and Misty slowly followed the rescue party in the manner of habit that comes of traveling the globe with a close group of companions.

"Ash…" Misty whispered, on the verge of tears, "Ash… why… why is Sableye sending us away? …Why?" She really wanted to know for sure and really didn't want to know for sure at the same time.

"S- Sableye… Sableye must have a- a… plan, then," Ash stammered, his voice betraying his lack of faith in his statement. The ghost boy was merely looking for some way to respond so Misty's question wouldn't continue to ring in his ears.

The icy world of the darkest, last cavern was suddenly very quiet to both of them.

Deathly quiet.

"…We _are_ dead, aren't we." Misty suddenly blurted out as she whipping around, her eyebrows furrowed in inner suffering. It wasn't a question. She stared straight into Sableye's silver eyes, already knowing that there is only one truth. Ash watched her expressionlessly over his shoulder, his mouth slightly opened. Sableye held the ghost girl's stare for a long moment, then looked down at the shining ice when he could no longer hold onto the silent connection. It was worse to look away, though, because the Darkness Pokémon knew that her eyes were still burning a hole right through him. _Maybe, I… maybe, I… I should have told them. ...Would it have been easier to tell them? …It was just another mistake not to… _He couldn't even remember why he hadn't in the first place now.

_We're… dead. _Ash simply felt numb. _It's… it's all over. Done. Misty and I are dead… just when I realize how I feel about her and we realize that we both feel the same way… then… it doesn't matter anymore… because we'll never be able to be together in our own bodies… and never be able to keep training our Pokémon and continuing our journey… It's over. It's done. …We're dead._

The rescue party, now a good distance from the icy waters, stared at the two souls of their friends, perplexed. The ghosts had paused halfway between themselves and the Sableye. Misty floated in place, her face out of view as she continued to stare at the Sableye. However, the profile of Ash's ghostly face was in clear view. His head tilted down, it was easy to see that his eyes were wide open, his mouth slightly loose, his gaze staring down in paralyzed disbelief at his open palms in front of him. He shakily squeezed his fingers to the middle of his hands, then released the grip. His expression, though blank, was that of blank terror, a sheer form of horror.

The rescue party hadn't heard what Misty had said. Still, Brock felt an uneasiness come over him as he saw the Sableye's down-turned face, and especially as he watched Ash. _…But they said… they promised that… they promised that they weren't dead… they said that they weren't dead… surely nothing could have changed… they said… they said…_ Brock stared until he couldn't stand it anymore. Then, he spoke up. "…Sableye?"

_…Don't make any more mistakes… _

Sableye slowly looked up once more.

Max suddenly seemed to have sensed the same thing Brock had. "…We …We need to battle that Haunter," the boy spoke softly.

And Sableye just shook his head.

"…Is… is he saying… that… that we're too late?" May gasped out, wide-eyed, the thought suddenly dawning on her.

"…No…" Brock shook his head back and forth slowly in stunned disbelief, "No… It can't be… It can't be too late to save Ash and Misty… How could it be? …How could there be a… a… time limit? …No… It just can't be…"

Max began to shiver, and didn't stop. Pikachu's claws made tiny holes in the young boy's green polo shirt. Poochyena pressed his head against Max's leg, unsure of exactly what was happening. Togepi continued to stay silent and blinking in May's tight, shaking grip.

The icy world of the darkest, last cavern was suddenly very quiet to all of them now, not just to the two unfettered souls.

Deathly quiet.

And Sableye realized just how quiet it had gotten… and how much colder, too. He finally acknowledged in his mind that something silky had been tapping him at regular intervals on the shoulder, just as the feather-light touch occurred once more. He turned his head slowly to the right and gazed into the expressionless, striped eyes of the frowning Shuppet. _…How long has it been there?… _After a silent moment of eye-to-eye connection, the Shuppet slowly turned its gaze upward, towards the ceiling, and the Darkness Pokémon did the same. His next breath came in with a shudder. The fluttering colony of Shuppets was gone.

Once more, the vague, smiling, wispy ghosts had disappeared. They were back in their holes in the high parts of the darkest cavern's walls. The intense quiet was explained by the absence of their whispering. Sableye was not stupid; he had figured out their pattern of coming and going a while ago: why they would be there one moment then not the next. But if they were gone now, then they had sensed…

Sableye wondered how long they had been gone. He wondered if they had fled before the frowning Shuppet had tapped him. He wondered if the frowning Shuppet had tapped him before they had fled. It had sensed HIM before the others had sensed HIM last time; had the odd Shuppet done so again?

The rescue party as a whole was still trying to come to some sort of conclusion, and the two souls were still trying to accept the fact that it now seemed that both were permanently without their bodies for eternity, when Sableye turned around to face the back wall, the frowning Shuppet fluttering out of his way and closer to the wall, staying there to float unobtrusively. Suddenly, Sableye started to scream out, his voice full of no emotion but that of anger. He was the very picture of fury.

"WHY DON'T YOU COME ON OUT, HAUNTER! WHY DON'T YOU STOP HIDING IN YOUR DEN AND COME OUT HERE! …I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN WATCHING THIS ENTIRE TIME, HAVEN'T YOU!" Sableye thought of the rescue party. He had tried to make them leave to save their own lives, but they hadn't. Once they made sense of what had come to pass, he knew what they would want. It wouldn't matter if it was too late to save their friends; they were obviously the type that would want to battle Haunter to prevent him from ever doing to someone else what had been done to Ash and Misty. Moreover, he knew in his heart that this battle was what he had really wanted himself. He had stayed in these cold caverns for two reasons: to stay with what remained of his trainer, and to stop Haunter once and for all. Sableye had been doing the first all along, and now would be his chance to do the second. "…COME OUT HERE AND… AND BATTLE! JUST COME OUT HERE AND BATTLE, HAUNTER! THERE'S SOME TRAINERS AND POKÉMON OUT HERE THAT WOULD LOVE THE CHANCE TO DEFEAT YOU FOR WHAT YOU'VE DONE, JUST LIKE I WOULD! …COME OUT HERE, HAUNTER!"

Every eye in the cavern was turned towards Sableye, and hundreds of striped eyes peered out invisibly at him from the holes in the walls. Every mind had momentarily forgotten what it was they had been focused on before. Every eye shifted to what Sableye had yelled at: the hole in the back wall. The pause, as everyone was silent and still, was long. The Darkness Pokémon wondered what to do next. He had almost given up, when, finally, the icily debonair reply came back to him.

"Well, well, well, Sableye. That's an interesting display of confidence you just exhibited. It's almost as if you believe you could actually beat me." And there HE was. The lavender Haunter didn't glide out of HIS den this time, or slowly materialize from thin air. HE hadn't been where HE was floating now a moment ago, and yet, HE hadn't simply appeared either; everyone had been watching, and they knew this was true. HE was just there. With his back leaning nonchalantly against the left rim of the hole to his den, Haunter levitated there in the most casual of manners. His fingers on one disembodied hand lightly touched the tips of the fingers on his other hand, his hands just underneath his chin. Above his smirking mouth, his frighteningly brilliant eyes were narrowed. The left side of his face was the only side visible, and the deep black scar across his eye stood out noticeably.

"Haunter," Sableye spat, staring in hatred at the lavender Pokémon.

"Sableye," Haunter acknowledged him back with his smirk, making Sableye's blood boil to hear the gentlemanly politeness of his voice.

Sableye heard the short gasp that came from the rescue party behind them. He wished that they hadn't done that, though he had done the same thing when he had first seen Haunter himself. The lavender Pokémon's smirk widened as his gaze shifted to the group that had newly come to the last cavern. HE knew that HE was intimidating, and HE seemed to enjoy having the intimidating appearance.

"That's the Haunter?" May squeakily whispered, her voice far higher than normal. She gave a quick glance to the ghosts of Ash and Misty. Both nodded slightly, solemn and full of anger at the oily-skinned lavender Pokémon. May glanced back at the Haunter and gulped, bringing the silently worried Togepi tighter to her chest.

"That's no normal Haunter," Max muttered back to his sister, his eyes roving over the Ghost- type, calculating. "It's got the lightest colored body I've ever seen before on one, and the strangest eyes. And just look at that scar! … 'Must've been in a tough battle, or something really dangerous to get such a deep looking cut."

"It looks pretty strong," Brock said low under his breath, "…but if we all work together and keep focused, I bet our Pokémon could still beat it in battle."

"So what'da we do now, Brock?" May whimpered, as she and the others watched the scarred Haunter levitate away from his leaning position and hover closer to them over the onyx icy water, facing them so that they saw him fully now. Brock didn't answer, however, as he wanted to hear what Haunter was saying to Sableye, even though he couldn't understand what it meant. Tone of voice went a long way in a discussion.

Haunter continued to smile. He lazily turned his gaze back to Sableye. "You were correct, dear Sableye, in inferring that I have been watching the entire time. Indeed, I have, and have been listening in as well. And why shouldn't I? You and your new friends were loud enough to wake a Snorlax, even with your whispering." Sableye continued to stare. "…I just have one question for you, dear Sableye…why haven't they realized that their dear little friends aren't going to ever inhabit those useless, cold cadavers again? My dear friend-"

"I'm nowhere close to being your friend, you murderer!" Sableye spat, when he could stand it no longer. The lavender Pokémon ignored his comment and continued talking.

"-you should have made sure they left this cavern after you shooed them away. I know that you know that it is pointless for them to battle me now; it will not restore their friends to their old bodies. Their time has passed. …Dear Sableye, you simply, once again, brought me more people to kill."

Sableye stared hard into Haunter's eyes. He ignored the last comment, unwilling to second-guess himself once again on that point. _HE simply must be stopped, no matter what. _The vermilion glow that rimmed the Ghost's black striped eyes pierced Sableye's vision. HE had to have some sort of weakness… something! _…My master… he… he used to say… he used to tell me, "no Pokémon is invincible"… "No opponent is perfect in every area of battle: offensive, defensive, speed, agility"… "Find the area in which they aren't perfect, and use it against them"… But I've been trying to find HIS weakness for so long! …You must have a weakness, you Evil One… you simply must! …I have been in these caverns long enough to see that it won't be easy to find it, but maybe… _Suddenly, a question hit Sableye that he hadn't thought to ask Haunter before, one that could possibly change everything. He knew that Haunter wanted to take the souls out of all people and non-Ghost Pokémon to kill them, but…

"…Why are you trying so hard to murder these innocent trainers, Haunter? Why do you want to kill people?"

Sableye thought he saw something very strange flicker in Haunter's vermilion-rimmed eyes (dare he think the word 'grief'?), but he couldn't be sure in the dim light of the cavern. Haunter seemed to pause for a moment, then HE smiled self-indulgently.

"Why do you not, Sableye? …Why do you not want to kill people?"

Sableye's eyes narrowed. He gritted his teeth at the very thought of himself doing such a sick act, using his razor sharp claws and teeth to destroy the precious gift that life was. Somehow, he had known that Haunter wouldn't answer such an important question. His voice became hard and low. "That's not a good answer."

"Well, dear Sableye, I don't believe that yours was a very good question to begin with!" Haunter replied in a strangely good-natured fashion, almost as if he enjoyed this conversational sort of struggle, rather than a physical one. "…Nor is it your business to know the answer to such a thing, really… But honestly, Sableye, I didn't think that you wanted to talk; I thought you wanted to battle. Was I mistaken?" He paused, then continued matter-of-factly, "What is it exactly that you're trying to do, Sableye?" Sableye stared hard into Haunter's terrifying eyes, and felt no fear for his own safety at all. When he replied, the Darkness Pokémon's voice was as resolute as the rising of the sun at dawn.

"I think I'm trying to save the world from you."

Haunter's gaze didn't flicker in the slightest at Sableye's pronouncement. The Ghost just smiled even more. _…Honorable cause, my friend. An honorable cause, it seems… It is too bad that you can't… understand… why… _Suavely, Haunter responded, "Then perhaps you should work on your goal a little harder… you certainly haven't, as you say, 'saved the world' from me so far, eh, Sableye?"

Suddenly, in the madness that his hatred had created, Sableye smirked back, catching the lavender-skinned Pokémon slightly off-guard. "That's true, Haunter, but… as my… as my master would say… 'time is a gift, so there's no time like the present'… and this present time seems like the perfect time to save the world to me…" Sableye's bright silver eyes glinted with conviction, and Haunter was forcibly reminded of the master of Sableye's that HE had slaughtered. At the same time, Sableye crouched down slightly and stepped back lightly with his left foot. He left his long slender arms and legs loosely bent and claws hanging at the ready, and kept his eyes trained on his target. It was his old battle stance, the one his master had taught him in order to be ready for any move, any attack, anything.

Such an obvious battle stance immediately alerted Brock and Max, whose hands immediately went to the Pokéballs (Brock's and Ash's, respectively) at their belts. May instantly let her hand go to her and Misty's Pokéballs after seeing the boy's reaction. Something deep inside of Haunter blanched at this sudden change in the event that was occurring. These friends of the two trainers he had separated the souls from were obviously intending to battle him even if they were frightened of him, unlike the other two who had run off screaming. Perhaps the Gaseous Pokémon was not as self-assured of his terrible powers as HE had always acted in front of Sableye. Handling a single Pokémon dependant upon a ten-year-old trainer for orders wasn't too difficult, and handling the same Pokémon in a weaker condition with no guidance from that trainer was a cinch, but handling that Pokémon in an enraged and fully-healed condition, along with a back-up crew of three trainers with Ho-Oh-only-knows what kind and how many Pokémon at what level, was a different thing altogether. Struggling to maintain HIS poised air while trying to figure out HIS options in this situation, the lavender Haunter smiled and tried not to sound worried in the least bit.

"Let's not fight, Sableye."

Sableye's eyes narrowed.

"Yes… let's."

The sparks from the lilac-and-onyx explosion, which resulted from the swift collision of Sableye's offensive Shadow Ball and Haunter's defensive Shadow Ball, flew in every direction, burning tiny holes in the icy floor and sending small whiffs of smoke up from the frigid black water. Haunter was extremely stunned by the high intensity and suddenness of what had just occurred; HE had only sent out the Shadow Ball attack on instinct, not having any time to think. The lavender Pokémon hadn't been ready to battle just yet, and with Sableye starting the action when he was ready himself, the Darkness Pokémon had gained the first advantage. Sableye's advantage was increased multiple times as Brock, May, and Max joined in before all of the Shadow Ball sparks had disappeared.

"GO! CROBAT!"

"LET'S GO, TORCHIC!"

"I CHOOSE YOU! TREECKO!"

Ash's ghost was at Max's side before his Wood Gecko Pokémon had even fully materialized from his Pokéball. Ash knew that Max couldn't hear him, and neither could his own Pokémon for that matter, but he wanted Max know that he was there to help in any way he could. The ghost boy trusted the younger bespectacled one very much with the handling of his Pokémon in battle, even though Max hadn't really battled much with Poochyena or any other Pokémon. Ash knew that Max had always watched his battling strategy closely from the sidelines and that Max knew all of his Pokémon's attacks and how they worked. Suddenly, watching Treecko, who was placing his favorite signature twig in his mouth, Ash realized that, being a ghost forever and all, he would never get to battle with his own Pokémon again. The ghost felt a deep emotional twinge in his chest as he stared at the young boy in glasses who was already deeply focused on the impending struggle. _My Pokémon will be Max's to battle with, then… at least Pikachu, anyway… and maybe Treecko, since Max has always wanted one. …This… this will… be good practice for the future… for them, then. …Beat that Haunter, you guys… beat it for me and for Misty… win this one for us…_

Misty was at May's side, too, even though May hadn't sent out one of Misty's Water Pokémon first. Misty wasn't as sure of May's battling technique as Ash was of Max's, so she was a bit glad that the younger girl had started off with one of her own Pokémon, which she was familiar with. Still, she had kind of been hoping to be able to watch her beloved Water- types in action at least once more, for the same thing that Ash had realized Misty had also realized as she had watched Sableye prepare to begin a battle; she would never be able to engage in an aquatic battle with her trusty Pokémon again. Who could, as a permanent member of the spirit world?

Sableye hadn't realized that his backup had already joined the seconds-long fray until he saw Crobat, his four remarkably coordinated wings flapping madly, barreling towards Haunter under Brock's command to use Wing Attack. As Haunter's eyes shifted in a sort of confused panic towards the Bat Pokémon's aerial strike, Sableye released a powerful Night Shade from the ground. Haunter noticed the Night Shade a split second before HE was going to dodge Crobat, so the tips of the purple wings grazed HIS right side just slightly as the Ghost Teleported a few inches backwards. The Night Shade attack flew past within centimeters of its target and hit a small stalactite on the ceiling, causing it to shatter instantly into a million jagged pieces and create a splash in the perilous black water below.

Torchic realized quickly that her tiny claws were quite necessary in keeping herself upright on the icy floor, and Treecko also saw that his paw pads, specialized for climbing any kind of surface, would be put to the test in this battle. Still, the two Hoenn starters immediately hastened towards the scene to make the battle 4-on-1. Haunter had to Teleport to escape the Ember attack that the Chick Pokémon sent at HIM just as Crobat was turning around to try a second Wing Attack. Feeling threatened the most by the Bat, Haunter put HIS hands together to start a Psychic attack when Treecko's Bullet Seed hit one of the Ghost's top spikes. The Grass- type's attack, though not really lowering HIS hit points, caused Haunter's head to begin ringing painfully, triggering Haunter's bewildered panic and uncertainty to morph into mounting rage in an instant.

In reckless fury, Haunter changed HIS target to Treecko, who was clinging to a stalagmite close to the cold black water and to Sableye's right, and continued with HIS Psychic attack. Torchic cried out in alarm, thinking that Treecko was about to become history, but Treecko gave a great leap backwards off of the stalagmite, shouting his name in an adrenaline rush, keeping himself from being vaporized by Haunter's awesomely powerful assault. Out of the corner of HIS terrible eyes, the lavender Pokémon spotted Crobat gaining on HIM and HE quickly Teleported to a safer piece of airspace some feet away. Crobat flew right through the place where Haunter had been a moment before, and his wings quickly backpedaled as the Bat became quite disoriented in confusion. Unfortunately, May had called for her own Pokémon to attack with Ember a moment before HE had Teleported, and the flames had just reached their target area when Crobat had stopped right in Haunter's place. Crobat let out a piercing supersonic shriek as he felt the tips of his four wings become singed, and he twisted around in midair, shocked. Both May and Brock let out a loud noise, somewhere between a shout and a groan, at the occurrence. It seemed obvious that having more Pokémon on their side than on the other side was a great advantage, but with Haunter's great maneuverability and the attacks against HIM not being coordinated, it was a disadvantage, too.

Haunter's vermilion rimmed eyes widened happily, and HE grinned in glee as HE saw the Bat's wingtips blacken. A small laugh escaped HIS mouth, and excitement coursed through HIM. HIS ability to Teleport was showing off its usefulness, and HE intended to exploit it now to its fullest extent. HE felt Sableye's determined silver eyes upon HIM, and HE sensed Sableye gearing up for another attack. Suddenly, without any warning of any kind, Haunter Teleported again… this time, to directly in front of Sableye. The lean Darkness Pokémon jumped back in shock as the Ghost appeared not inches away from him near the ice. Haunter had given off no warning at all; HE hadn't even looked at Sableye, so Sableye hadn't even had a chance to think that Haunter would come after him next. Haunter's dismembered right hand gave a great blow to the side of Sableye's face, knocking the Pokémon off of his feet and sending him sliding across the ice to his right. Sableye managed to look up from where he lay in a heap after slowing to a stop next to a stalagmite, but Haunter had already disappeared again.

The lavender Ghost had Teleported high above the rest of the Pokémon on the battle area, up where the Shuppets usually stayed. Crobat had been waiting for Brock to point out where the Haunter appeared next, rather than dizzy himself by looking around three hundred sixty degrees, and when Brock's finger shot up to point out the airspace right above him, the Bat gave a great wing beat to propel himself straight upwards without wasting time checking for a visual target. On Brock's shouted command, Crobat released the most powerful Supersonic attack he could muster in the direction he was flying. The targeting technique would have worked, save for the fact that Haunter had been looking down on the battle area, and had a split second to Teleport several feet to the right before the Supersonic reached him. Brock gritted his teeth in frustration, but a second later, his mouth was wide open in horror. Though the ceiling of the cavern was covered in stalactites, the space on the ceiling where the Supersonic hit was clear and slick. The attack that inflicted its target with confusion was not soaked up by the stone, but was reflected.

Crobat was hit with his own extra-powered Supersonic attack before he could blink, except now, the attack was doubled in force, just as if it had been reflected by a Mirror Coat technique. The Bat's fierce eyes suddenly crossed, and his four coordinated wings ground to a halt for a split second in mid air. Then, in complete fear and confusion, all four wings began to flap wildly, all independent of each other, sending the Bat into a seizure. The action on the battlefield almost stopped as the group on the ground and the ghosts of Ash and Misty watched in horror at the sickening display. The purple Bat was out of his mind in confusion, accidentally hitting himself in the face several times with different wings as each wing rolled, backpedaled, or tried to keep the afflicted Pokémon hovering in the air. Then, Crobat dropped. He had only fallen a few feet before red light from his Pokéball, held out quickly in Brock's hand, took him into its center to keep the dazed Bat from hurting itself anymore than it already had.

For one short second, the entire battlefield was silent in terror. Haunter recovered first. He had only glanced at Crobat long enough to see that he was no longer a threat before Teleporting even farther to the right into the middle of the airspace. Before the end of the red light had even disappeared back into Crobat's Pokéball, Haunter was letting another Shadow Ball build up in his hands. His frightening striped eyes fell on Torchic. It seemed a bit weaker than the others, though perhaps, in Haunter's opinion, only because it was disgustingly cute. Strategy wise, it was best to pick the strongest opponents off first, but if he could take out the weaker ones during a period of confusion, then the annoyances caused by the weaker opponents, such as that headache-inducing Bullet Seed from the Treecko, wouldn't distract him from the real battle at hand.

Behind his glasses, Max's eyes had hardened as he watched Brock gripping Crobat's Pokéball tightly. Brock was staring at it strangely, his eyebrows furrowed deeply and his teeth gritted. Then Max saw that Brock's whole body was trembling just slightly, and Max knew why. Crobat was one of Brock's oldest Pokémon, and therefore, one of his strongest and most skilled. For the great Pokémon to be knocked out like that, and with his own attack due to a simple dodge by the opponent, was almost unbearable. Max's hand went to Ash's belt around his waist almost unconsciously, clutching the third Pokéball tightly and preparing to enlarge and throw it. He had to do something quickly. If Haunter kept Teleporting, not only could HE evade every energy-consuming attack that the rescue team's Pokémon threw at him, he didn't even have to attack himself. Each attack would either wear the Pokémon out a little more and the weariness would accumulate until they couldn't move, or the attack would find some way to bounce back, either by reflection off a smooth surface or by hitting one of the stalactites that would fall and crush them. Max knew the first step to defeating that Haunter had to be to keep him from Teleporting. And Max knew exactly how to do that.

May had turned her eyes to Brock out of concern, too. However, the faint existence of a trainer's instinct inside of her suddenly seized a hold of her, and she whipped her head around to locate her Chick Pokémon. A second after she spotted the little yellow and orange Pokémon out on the ice, her eyes caught sight of the lavender Haunter with HIS hands full of Shadow Ball, staring straight at Torchic. May let out a strangled cry. The ghostly Misty, still keeping an eye on the younger girl, saw the catastrophe in the making, too, and her hand went straight to her soul mate's hand on impulse. Ash's trainer eyes swiftly saw the problem, too, and his free hand immediately went to give Max a slight shove.

The bespectacled boy had been so caught up in his thoughts that he had almost forgotten the Pokémon he was already using in battle and had almost forgotten that Haunter wasn't waiting for commands to attack from another trainer. Luckily, his caramel eyes took in the situation fast enough that he was able to shout out, before Haunter's attack was released, "Treecko! Help Torchic! Quickly!" The Wood Gecko Pokémon whirled around, saw the Shadow Ball hurtling through the air, and did the only thing he had time to do: jump. Treecko leaped straight at Torchic, catching the startled Chick in his paws and allowing the force of his jump to carry him and the other Pokémon out of harm's way. Unfortunately, as the Shadow Ball smashed into the icy floor behind them, shards of frozen water were sent flying, and one large shard hit Treecko square on the back. Treecko and Torchic were sent tumbling across the ice in a heap. The two Pokémon only came to stop as they slid into a stalagmite, where they remained, motionless. They had been knocked out by the tumble.

May screamed in fear for her first Pokémon. Max had gritted his teeth, just like Brock had, but he was too in the heat of battle now to be afraid. Treecko had only hit the ice hard enough for it to knock him out, not cause him any lasting damage, so Max retracted the unconscious Wood Gecko back into his Pokéball in his left hand, with May following suit with Torchic. At the same time, his right hand was releasing the Pokémon inside of the ball that he had chosen from Ash's belt. "I know you're probably really tired by now," Max shouted desperately, as the Pokémon materialized in a red beam of light, "but we need you if we're going to win this! LET'S GET HIM, NOCTOWL!" With a purring hoot, the Shiny Owl Pokémon rose into the air on his wide wings, but the speed of his flight was far from his usual quickness. _That's all right,_ Max thought, his heart pounding rapidly with adrenaline and feeling Pikachu's tiny claws sinking into his shoulder even tighter, _I only need to get one attack out of Noctowl, and then he can rest as long as he wants to. _

_A Noctowl… _Haunter thought, a bit of anxiety creeping up on him after his triumphant feeling at knocking out two Pokémon with one hit, _What is that little boy planning on doing with the Owl? He has some strategy in mind, I can tell… _The lavender Ghost Pokémon saw the excited look on the face of the boy ghost hovering next to the boy wearing glasses, so the ghost had to have some idea about the plan. Sableye had picked himself up off the floor quickly after Crobat's fall, but he hadn't had time to get to Torchic the way that Treecko had. Sableye watched Noctowl flapping higher, and he felt as if he knew why Max had chosen this Pokémon, but his mind wouldn't allow him to figure it out at the moment.

Max's release of his next Pokémon had awoken Brock from his troubled thoughts about Crobat. He knew he had to focus; Ash and Misty's lives depended upon beating this Haunter. His mind was working a bit slower at the moment than Max's, however, because he suddenly realized that he didn't know which Pokémon to release next. _Well… I suppose I can't release Onix at all, since the enormous weight of his rock body would cause the ice to break even further, and we might all be plunged into cold water… _After a quick moment's thought, Brock grabbed a Pokéball and threw it. "LET'S GO, VULPIX!" As the orange Fox Pokémon appeared, her tiny claws barely keeping herself from sliding on the ice, Brock commanded, "Vulpix, use your Flamethrower on the Haunter!"

Brock's shouting had woken May from her own gripping terror. _Hang in there, Torchic! Hopefully, this will all be over soon. _May glanced up at Noctowl, who was soaring upwards to the airspace closest to the stalactites. _I guess Max is using an air attack. I will, too, then. _Feeling that Misty would be pleased with her choice, May released one of the older girl's Pokéballs with the hand not clutching the overwhelmed Togepi. "I CHOOSE YOU! WINGULL!" May felt a ghostly affirming touch on her shoulder, and felt herself smile a little, despite their current situation. She hoped that she remembered the Seagull Pokémon's attacks correctly. The blue-and-white bird let out a great cry, probably glad to see that she would be fighting alongside her friend Noctowl. "Alright, now, Wingull, use your Water Gun attack! Aim at the Haunter!"

Haunter stayed where HE was, floating in the air cautiously. HE had taken HIS wondering mind off of the Noctowl upon hearing the two trainer's calling out new attacks. The Vulpix seemed as strong as the Crobat had been, but the Wingull looked somewhat inexperienced. HE waited for the Vulpix's Flamethrower and the Wingull's Water Gun to get within two feet of HIM before HE Teleported once more, this time, to the total opposite side of the room. _Haven't these pathetic humans figured it out yet? Attacking me head on isn't going to work. _

Max had informed Noctowl of the attack he was going to call for via hand signals, but had stopped himself from calling out the attack command when he heard May and Brock shouting out their own attacks, choosing to wait for the opportune moment. When Haunter Teleported once more, Max felt a small grin alight on his face. Haunter had fallen right into his trap. "OKAY, NOCTOWL, DO IT!" Max shouted at the top of his voice, pointing his finger aggressively at Haunter. The Gas Pokémon only had the chance to look at Max in a wary manner before twin beams of red light shot out of Noctowl's large eyes and engulfed the Ghost- type in their glare. Haunter had shut HIS fierce eyes quickly, HIS dismembered hands balled up tightly in hard fists, as the light passed over HIM, but opened HIS eyes curiously as the beams flickered and died. The attack had done HIM no harm, as far as HE could tell; HE only felt a slightly bit heavier, but perhaps this was just because HE was growing tired of battling.

Noctowl's wings were beating even slower now, so Max recalled the Owl with a triumphant grin. "You've done more than your share, Noctowl," he whispered as the Pokéball shut with the exhausted bird safely inside, "Now you get a good long rest." Ash gave a ghostly thumbs-up to the bespectacled boy. Out of the corner of his eyes, Max saw the Sableye smiling at him across the ice. The Darkness Pokémon had obviously figured out what Max had done and how important it would be to the battle.

_Foresight. _Sableye stared up at Haunter, who was shaking HIS head slightly as if to shake off the weighing effects of the attack. _Perfect. The Noctowl must have used this attack on Ash and Misty so that the rest of the group could see them… We just might… We just might be able to pull this off after all… _

"May!" Brock shouted, as Haunter's eyes came back to the battlefield. "We need to hit Haunter now with everything we've got!" The girl nodded quickly, despite the fact that she wasn't exactly sure what had happened. Every time they had aimed directly at the Gas Pokémon, HE had simply Teleported, but May trusted Brock's command as the eldest of the group obviously knew what he was doing. At the same time the two trainers cried out their most recent attacks again, except at maximum power this time. Haunter was waiting, as the supercharged Flamethrower and Water Gun came straight for HIM once more. Sableye watched as Haunter seemed to tense up, then blink his eyes just once. A second later, a horrified look came across the Ghost- type's face. A second after that, the two attacks slammed directly into Haunter's body.

Noctowl's Foresight attack had turned the Gas Pokémon's body into a more solid form, just as it had to Ash and Misty's ghostly bodies. Haunter was unable to Teleport.

The Flamethrower and Water Gun knocked the lavender Pokémon straight into the back wall. The rescue party had almost begun cheering, but their breath was taken away from them when the sight of a singed and damp, and most thoroughly ferocious, Haunter appeared, struggling HIS way out of the fire and water beams and barreling towards them over top of the attacks. Gone was any trace of the gentleman in the Pokémon; the malicious Haunter, with HIS frightening black scar across HIS left eye and HIS strange coat color, had completely morphed into the evil beast that HE truly was. Haunter was no longer thinking straight. The fact that a flimsy little attack had so thoroughly destroyed HIS strategy was not only frustrating, but also embarrassing. _NO ONE MAKES A FOOL OF ME LIKE THAT! _Haunter screamed in his mind. _NO ONE! _

A spasm of fear passed through Max. He had thought that, once Haunter couldn't Teleport, HE might be at least a little more uncertain about HIS opponents' strength. However, if anything, Haunter seemed to be the one with more strength now. Max felt his body tense up. The group would have to use every Pokémon they had left, with all of their strongest attacks, in order to defeat Haunter, but the number of Pokémon they could use was dwindling fast. Due to the fact that her claws were too tiny to securely hold onto the ice, Vulpix had been buffeted backwards by the strength of her own supercharged Flamethrower, flipping head over heels, and was desperately trying to regain her footing to no avail. Brock withdrew the orange Fox into her Pokéball just in time, for a Shadow Ball zipped right toward her former position to create another fissure in the icy floor and throw ice shards in every direction. The crazed lavender Haunter had not given a second look to HIS attack once HE had released it; HE was already charging up another Shadow Ball and aiming it at the Pokémon that had hit him with the Water Gun.

"Wingull! Dive down quickly!" May cried out, seeing Haunter targeting the Seagull Pokémon. With a sharp frightened cry, Wingull flipped over backwards in midair and plummeted down from her high altitude in a spiral, displaying all of her awesome agility. This only enraged Haunter more. Screaming savagely in frustration, the wide-eyed Ghost- type began rapidly shooting one tightly compacted Shadow Ball at the Seagull Pokémon after another, one from each hand in a barrage of fury. Every attack missed Wingull, but the Shadow Balls were gaining on her; one barely clipped her short tail feathers, and she let out a throaty squawk of fear, coming out of her spiraling dive and leveling off her flight a few feet from the icy floor. Screaming once more, Haunter pulled HIMSELF together for one large Shadow Ball and let it fly at the retreating bird. Wingull's flight had taken her around behind the rescue party, and she had just cleared them on the other side when the Shadow Ball began barreling towards her. Seeing that Wingull could not possibly stop or turn to avoid the Ghost- type attack in time, May hastily held out Wingull's Pokéball and withdrew her from the battlefield in a red beam. The Shadow Ball hurtled past Wingull's previous airspace and, as the party gasped, formed a great hole in the ice not two feet from Misty's cold body on the floor.

Poochyena, who had been watching the entire battle wide-eyed from next to Max's leg, suddenly felt the gray fur on the back of his neck bristle in anger. Too busy were Brock, May, and Max watching Wingull's descent to notice that Sableye was the only Pokémon left to face Haunter on the battlefield, and Sableye was not even their own Pokémon. Though vary wary of the ice, the little Bite Pokémon managed to stand up on his black paws and, finding just a hint of traction, propel himself away from the unaware rescue group out into the open ice. As he slid across the ice in Sableye's general direction, his mind was on the attack that both Sableye and Haunter seemed to be favoring the most, and in his heart, he felt that he could probably perform that attack, too. Keeping his red-and-yellow eyes fixed on Haunter, he tried to summon whatever Ghost- type energy he had in his small Dark body and form it into a ball-shape in his mouth.

Sableye was utilizing Haunter's moment of madness by building up one more Shadow Ball attack to aim at the frenzied Ghost- type. He was trying to be conservative of his energy, as the rescue party seemed to be going through their Pokémon teams quickly and Sableye had no idea how many Pokémon they had left. The battle could still be a long one, or it could be over quickly; Sableye was, of course, hoping for the latter, but one could never be sure of anything if Haunter was involved in it. He let the attack loose too late however, as Haunter glanced around in time to see Sableye's release. Though HE could no longer Teleport, HE could still dodge, and Haunter glided several feet to HIS left. The attack crashed harmlessly into the wall behind him, and Sableye saw Haunter's crazed smile directed at him. Suddenly, however, the smile turned to a look of surprise, and Sableye did not even have enough time to glance around before the scarred side of Haunter's face was struck with an attack almost identical to Sableye's own.

The lavender Ghost- type screamed in rage as HE was flipped around in midair. The rescue party instantly turned around at the noise, and Max gasped. "POOCHYENA! What are you doing out there!" The wolf Pokémon barked happily, and wagged his tail. His first try at a Shadow Ball attack had been quite successful. His bespectacled master would be proud of him once he figured out that he had been the one to hit Haunter.

Max's Pokémon looked small out on the ice where he had slowed down to a stop. Max blinked, staring at his Dark- type. When Haunter had screamed again, Max was sure HE had been hit by another attack, but Poochyena seemed so pleased that… _Could Poochyena have sent out an attack himself? He's never used any long-range attacks before, just Tackle and things like that…_ Haunter seemed to be thinking that Poochyena had sent out the Shadow Ball that had hit HIM in the eye, too. With speed born from madness, Haunter suddenly began to swoop down out of the higher airspace towards Poochyena, crying out maliciously like a trite spirit from a haunted house. The Bite Pokémon's glee changed instantly into fear, and he tried to kick off the ice to go back to his master in a panic. This time, his tiny claws found no traction on the ice, and the pup's feet tangled and he fell down. A tiny howl of trepidation escaped Poochyena's mouth as his eyes caught sight of the rapidly approaching Haunter, and he began to tremble where he lay, shutting his eyes tightly. Suddenly, two clawed hands had encircled him from behind, whisked him up off of the ice, and began to carry him off. The pup cried out and tried to curl himself into a protective ball until he realized he was been jostled about in the same way he was handled when Max carried him. Poochyena opened his eyes and glanced upward to find himself staring at silver hexagonal eyes.

Sableye ran across the ice, with Max's Pokémon in his arms, almost as fast as if he was running on a non-slick surface. In his mind, he thanked Ho-oh for the fact that he could stick to the floor so easily with only the claws on his back paws, but his eyes were on the lavender Pokémon behind them, who was swiftly gaining on them in HIS maniacal pursuit. Sableye's razor teeth were clenched in frustration. _I'm sorry, master… but you were wrong. Not every Pokémon is conquerable… this murderous monster does not have a weakness… I just don't see how it is possible. Even after this long battle, HE is still going strong, even if HIS sanity seems to have left HIM. It will take a miracle now… _Sableye never took his eyes off of Haunter, no matter how hard it was to look at HIM, so he barely caught sight out of the corner of his eyes of several red beams flickering in the direction he was headed.

Suddenly, a great chorus of shouting erupted from the rescue party, and Sableye was unable to stop himself from looking around.

"LET'S GET HIM! LOTAD AND MUDKIP!"

"COME ON CORSOLA, PSYDUCK, AND STARYU! HELP THEM OUT!"

"TIME TO END THIS BATTLE! GO, CORPHISH!"

Sableye barely had enough time to hit the ice, protecting Poochyena's body with his own, as three Water Guns, two Bubblebeams, and a Water Pulse shot over his head in Haunter's direction. All six Water- type attacks connected with their frenzied target, sending HIM straight into the back wall of the dimly lit cavern once more. Haunter clawed at the heavy attacks pounding HIM against the wall with both of HIS dismembered hands, but HE could no longer shout under the watery barrage. As the six Pokémon continued their attacks, standing in a tight line in front of Brock, May, Max, and the floating souls of Ash and Misty, Sableye crawled across the ice towards the party with Poochyena in tow. A tight smile flickered across the Darkness Pokémon's face. _Maybe… maybe a miracle could take place here… just maybe, if they keep this kind of attacking up… _

Max was keeping an eye on Corphish's Bubblebeam, but he looked away quickly as a slightly panting Sableye appeared at a side, holding an embarrassed Poochyena out to his master. "Poochyena!" Max rejoiced, taking the pup into his arms. On Max's left shoulder, Pikachu patted Poochyena's head lightly with a paw, a small smile on his mouth. Max glanced at the violet Pokémon that was almost his height and saw that Sableye looked both content and anxious at the same time. "Thank you, Sableye," Max whispered quietly so only Sableye could hear him over the rushing sound of the Water- type attacks. Sableye's tight smile flickered on his face once more, and he gave a short nod. Then, turning away from Max, Sableye walked resolutely on his back paws to stand next to Corphish on the left end of the line and seemed to take a deep breath to focus. Then, crouching down, Sableye gathered the small bit of Water- type energy in his body and released his own watery attack, aiming straight at the Haunter plastered against the back wall along with the others. _Awesome! Sableye can use Water Pulse! _Max thought. _Wait… I read that yesterday in my book on Dark- type Pokémon. _Max watched Sableye with excited eyes. _How powerful Sableye is!_

The ceaseless onslaught of Water- type attacks seemed to be keeping Haunter in HIS place, and hopefully, Brock thought, it was seriously depleting HIS hit points. _Come on, _Brock thought impatiently with a glance at the ghosts of Ash and Misty. Both of them were fully engaged in the battle at hand, never taking their eyes off the Pokémon or the target to glance at their cold, white bodies on the ice or anywhere else. _It just can't be too late… It just can't be too late to save them… Oh Ho-oh, they've both been my best friends for ages. Our journey can't end here, down in this dark, cold cavern. This can't be the end. _

"Come on, guys, keep it up," May cried out encouragingly, shaking her fist. Togepi trilled lightly in May's other arm. Unfortunately, the words of inspiration only distracted Psyduck, causing him to lose his hesitant balance on the ice, forget his attack, and fall down on his stomach with a panicked cry. May, with an apologetic and bewildered expression on her face, saw the ghostly Misty hovering next to her smack herself in the face in exasperation. Though Psyduck had learned a lot about using his abilities without needing a headache, he was still Psyduck, after all. At a gesture from Misty, May recalled the distressed Pokémon with a "Return now, Psyduck." Even without the yellow duck, May still had to keep up with Staryu and Corsola. The throbbing of the Water Pulses was starting to make May slightly queasy. She even thought that she heard one of the boys call her name questioningly, but when she glanced around, all of their eyes were focused on the battle. May blinked. Max had said that Ghost- type Pokémon were one of the more mysterious types, so maybe the Haunter was trying to mess with her head by using some psychic technique. May panicked slightly. There was no way HE could mess with her from underneath the water barrage. "STOP!" May suddenly shouted. "Stop the attacks!" When both Max and Brock shot her confused looks, she cried, "Maybe the Haunter's escaped! We can't even see anything under all that water!" This was true. Haunter's hands were no longer clawing at the attacks.

_Impossible… _Max thought, but along with May and Brock, he called off Corphish's attack. _There's no way HE could have escaped with that Foresight technique still working on HIM. But, all of the other attacks could have made it wear off slightly. Well, we'll be ready if HE is still there…_ As Mudkip, Lotad, Staryu, Corsola, Corphish, and finally Sableye stopped their bombardment, it became clear that Haunter was still there. However, HE looked so worse for the wear that it seemed phenomenal that the Ghost- type was still floating in the airspace next to the back wall. HIS lavender-and-gray tinted oily coat was absolutely saturated, and HIS head spikes were drooping. The dismembered hands were hanging limply near HIS body, and HE had HIS terrible face turned down so that no one could see HIS face. The last cavern grew still and totally silent as everyone waited with bated breath for something to happen.

Then, Haunter looked up. HIS face was livid, but HIS exhaustion was clear. All of the Teleporting, Shadow Ball throwing, and attack receiving HE had experienced had taken their toll on HIS body, an image which sent Sableye's heart racing with excitement, despite the fact that Haunter's livid glare was sent directly at himself. _It's working… It really is working… I think… I think we've almost got HIM now… _Suddenly, Haunter was moving towards them; slowly, for sure, but the Ghost- type was still coming towards them. HE flexed his dismembered hands aggressively. HE was not out yet.

As the rescue party tensed around him in apprehension, Max felt something nagging at the back of his mind. _There's got to be one good attack to finish him off with, _he thought, his caramel eyes scanning Sableye and the Water Pokémon in front of him. _That's all we need… one good attack…_ Max glanced to his left shoulder, and suddenly, he knew. However, a second later his eyes shot to the ghostly Ash hovering next to him. Ash was already looking at Max, and when he saw Max's anxiously questioning eyes gazing back at him, Ash grinned and gave a short nod of ascension. _Go for it, Max. You know what to do._ Max smiled softly and nodded, his eyes shifting quickly back to Haunter. _Here we go, then…_

Shifting Poochyena slightly to his right arm, Max straightened his left arm out in front of him to point at the slowly advancing Haunter. He felt tiny claws gripping the sleeve of his green polo shirt tighter, and a shot of excitement coursed through Max for a split second.

"PIKACHU! USE THUNDERBOLT!"

All of the people, souls, and Pokémon in the party, along with Sableye, twisted around just in time to watch the yellow electric mouse take off from Max's shoulder, give a short run down his leveled arm, and take a great leap into the air, his red cheeks sparking wildly. Sableye saw the look on Pikachu's face out of the corner of his eye, and almost felt pity for Haunter… almost. Ash was obviously to Pikachu as his late master was to Sableye, and the enraged Pikachu would never forgive anyone who hurt his trainer the way that Haunter had. Haunter had frozen in midair. A great electrical bolt shot out of Pikachu's cheeks and hit Haunter before anyone ever had a chance to even breathe, illuminating the dark cavern with a blast of light that had never been seen in that place before.

The fact that Haunter had been saturated with water did not keep the electricity from covering HIM with its voltage. In fact, of course, it only helped.

Even as Pikachu's attack finished and the electric Pokémon landed on the ice with a slight skid, no one looked away from the lavender Ghost- type, whose coat was now dark gray with cinders and was still covered in tiny sparks, as HE fell slowly, almost like a feather, out of the air to land with a dull thud on the icy floor near the edge of the water. Small wisps of smoke began to rise lazily from the motionless Pokémon on the floor, the disembodied hands lying limp on the cold ice, one on each side.

Sableye's mind and body was paralyzed for a moment. As it became clear that Haunter was not going to move, his brain began to work once more. _I… I can't believe it… We've got HIM… we knocked HIM out… WE STOPPED HIM! _A deep, ragged cry erupted from Sableye's throat unbidden, and he took a few steps backwards on the ice to keep himself from falling down in joyful shock. The rescue team clearly took this as a sign that the Evil One was unconscious and suddenly, the whole group began to cheer. Pikachu, his eyes now filled with excitement, managed to sink his tiny claws into the floor deep enough to just make it back to Max to scamper back up onto his shoulder. The Water Pokémon gathered around the trainers as May cried out in relief and Brock patted Max on the back, saying, "Nice strategy, oh wise one," and Max laughed in embarrassment.

All of a sudden, May froze and cried out, "Oh no! We have to hurry!" Before they could all turn to look at her, she pointed straight at the two souls, wide-eyed. "Ash! Misty! We have to get you two back to your bodies!"

"That's right!" Brock said in shock, wondering how he could possibly forget their reason for battling Haunter in the first place. It seemed, however, that Ash and Misty had forgotten about this as well, seeing as how they both turned to each other with identical surprised looks on their faces. Sableye's mounting exuberance evaporated instantly. His face fell to the icy floor, where his slight reflection seemed to stare back at him sternly.

Fortunately, no one saw Sableye's sudden change in behavior. Lotad, Mudkip, Staryu, Corsola, and Corphish were all being withdrawn back into their Pokéballs to rest, and the eyes of Brock, May, Max, Pikachu, Poochyena, and even Togepi were drawn to the two souls floating a few inches from the ice.

The ghostly Misty had turned her back to the group so that she was facing her cold, white body. Ash followed suit, and his eyes watched his soulmate staring with a partly sad, partly stubborn look on her face. Ash had seen this look before. "What is it, Misty?" he whispered quietly, even though none of their group could hear but the violet Darkness Pokémon would be able to.

She didn't respond or look at him for a moment, her short hair swirling gently in an ethereal breeze. Finally, her eyes met his, and he saw sorrow in her gaze. "Ash," she spoke slowly and softly, as if unsure of what she was going to say next. "You saw the look on Sableye's face when I asked him if we're dead. He couldn't look at us. We're gone, Ash. We're dead. There's no way. I know you feel it, too."

Ash had felt it, that feeling of deep defeat. He was sure they were dead too, but their souls were still in the cavern. They hadn't been taken to some other place. No white lights at the end of a tunnel; nothing. "But…" Ash whispered, his voice cracking, "in that poem… in the poem on the wall, it said that if we defeated the 'Evil One,' that Haunter, then we would be able to return to our bodies! And we defeated HIM!"

"Ash, it said we could return if we defeated HIM in an hour. It's been over an hour. Sableye knows, and that's why he didn't want to tell Brock and May and Max." Misty gave a dry laugh. "If the hour wasn't up by the time we got back down here, it certainly is up now after that long battle."

Ash was silent for a moment. He knew everything Misty said was true, and yet…

"We have to at least give it a try, Mist," he said, and Misty saw his own stubbornness in his eyes. "We have to at least try, even if it is just for the others to see that we gave it a shot. We have to just try to get back in our bodies one time."

"It won't do any good-"

"I can't just lose you like this!" Ash suddenly cried out loudly, startling his soulmate. He was glad that the group wasn't able to hear him. Ash had to look away. "I can't just lose you this way," he spoke, much softer now, rather tenderly. "I just… I just found out how much I feel for you, Misty. I can't let everything end when it was only just beginning." Almost wistfully, in a very un-Ash-like way, he whispered, "We had our whole lives ahead of us…"

Misty's heart almost broke. Whenever that boy got that forlorn look on his face, she always practically melted in distress. "Ash…" His name came out of her mouth without her permission. "…You aren't losing me." He glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes. "No matter what happens. Even if we die," she hesitated, waiting for him to look her fully in the eye, "… even if our souls are stuck here forever… we'll always be together. It's you and me, Ash." She elbowed him gently and tried to get him to smile; she wanted to pull him close to her and hold him tight, but the others were looking, of course. "Together forever, no matter how long. From now until the end of time. Not even death can part us. You aren't losing me, Ash, and I'll never leave you."

"…I'll never leave you either," he whispered back, suddenly feeling a bit shy. Misty saw his embarrassed expression and gave a short laugh.

"Come on, then. Let's give it a try already!" Ash cocked his head at her statement. She nodded once, and it was enough.

The souls of Ash and Misty began to cautiously drift towards their motionless bodies. Brock shivered as he watched them. After the heat of the battle, the chill of the deep cavern had been revitalized, but it was the way that Ash and Misty had seemed hesitant to approach their own bodies that really chilled his heart. _You two just can't… you just can't be dead… _May was clutching Togepi to her chest so tightly that both her and the baby Pokémon could barely breathe. Max was sure that his shoulder had to be bleeding by now, what with the way Pikachu's claws were cutting into him. He shifted his wolf pup in his arms, his mind almost blank and silent for once, waiting. Sableye was still watching the icy floor, though keeping an eye on the two souls out of the corner of his vision.

Then, the ghostly Ash and Misty were there, floating over their own bodies. For some reason, Ash's anxious mind began to wonder what would happen if their bodies let them back in, but they ended up in the other's body. _That would be awkward, _he thought, his consciousness not allowing him sink into despair by remaining as casual and ridiculous as possible. _…Though perhaps, not as awkward as it would have been before…_ Ash's right hand began to slowly reach out to touch his solid form in the chest. He saw that his body's right hand was lightly resting on top of Misty's left. The warm sensation flared in his stomach for a moment, but he kicked it down; now was definitely not the time to be thinking that way. He glanced over at Misty and saw her own hand extended towards her body in the same way, waiting for Ash. One look in the eyes, and both moved their fingers further down. Misty sucked in an unnecessary breath as her fingers almost brushed her shirt. Before, they had only been able to get within one inch of their bodies. Their fingers were barely half a centimeter away now. Ash looked at Misty one more time, and she at him. It suddenly came into his mind that, perhaps, entering their bodies wasn't the best thing to do. Maybe reentering their bodies after an hour only sealed their death and sent them to some other place not on the earth. But it was too late to go back now, it seemed, too late to stop and think. _You said you'd never leave me, Misty, so if this is it… I'll see you on the other side…_

In the same second, both let their fingers touch their bodies.

Instantly, Ash felt a jerk behind his naval, and his consciousness faded to black.

Neither Brock, May, nor Max felt like they were breathing after watching the two souls being sucked straight into their cold bodies. None of them moved, and none of them saw the look of complete and utter astonishment on Sableye's face. Time stood still, until it seemed like they had been waiting forever. Unconscious of the act, a short sob escaped May's throat as neither Ash nor Misty made any movement. Max couldn't blink. Brock felt as if he had died on the inside. They waited, but nothing happened.

The whole group almost missed the slight twitch of Ash's hand in Misty's, and of Misty's hand in his. But they saw it.

Consciousness seemed to come back to him far slower than it had left him. However, when it did, he almost wished it hadn't had. His chest was in a great amount of pain, as if he had been hit by something hard, and the first breath he took was the hardest to take. Every bone in his body seemed to ache: his spine, his arms, his legs; even his muscles felt tight under his skin. However, a bizarre pain below his chest seemed to hurt the worst, even though his mind seemed to continue to be groggy. His hearing seemed to be working fine, though, seeing as his head was suddenly ringing with high-pitched squeals of "ASH! MISTY! YOU'RE ALIVE!"

_We're… alive?_ He didn't seem to think that was right, and yet, he didn't know why he would be in so much pain if he wasn't alive. _I thought that your pain was taken away when you died… then, we must be…_ Feeling something tightening around his hand, he slowly turned his head to the right, for the first time feeling the cold as his cheek touched the ice. And there she lay next to him, her short hair perfectly framing her face. She was already looking at him herself, and his stomach suddenly warmed. He was looking into the deep ocean-hue of her eyes once more.

A sea of brilliant colors suddenly sprang into his sight, and though everything seemed blurry at first, his eyes quickly took in Brock, May, and Max all huddled around Misty and himself, their smiles wide and their faces lit up in excitement, crying out in happiness and asking if they were all right. From on Max's shoulder, Pikachu's round eyes were filled with tears, though the little electric mouse was obviously trying to hold them in. Togepi had let loose an unbroken stream of happy trills, and Poochyena's tongue was hanging out of his mouth in glee. Ash let his russet eyes shift back to Misty's, and he saw the smile on her face. His stomach heated up again, but a bizarre pain in that area twitched again. Ash heard Brock ask if they were alright once more, and, though his vocal chords felt strange, he said the first thing that came to his mind.

"I'm hungry."

That hadn't been what he had meant to say, despite the fact that it was very true, but at least Misty seemed to think it was funny. She suddenly let out a short laugh, and those two exclamations seemed to confirm the fact to their friends that the two trainers were indeed alive, if not completely well at the moment. And suddenly, Ash felt Brock's hands under his arms, lifting him up so that he could sit on the ice. Every tiny movement made more pain flair up, and a groan escaped Ash's mouth, but after a moment of slouching in a sitting position with his legs spread wide on the floor, he realized that the pain was necessary; it allowed him to know that nothing had become paralyzed or frozen from the cold or from his soul's temporary absence. As soon as his breathing began to become more normal and steady, his eyes swiftly shifted back to Misty. She was sitting up, leaning back heavily against May, Ash's vest halfway falling off of her shoulders. She was gently tickling her trilling Togepi, who was still in May's arms, with a single finger. There was a small and tired smile on her face, but when saw him gazing at her, the smile grew warm. Ash felt a smile twitch onto his face, letting Brock shake his shoulders a bit to loosen the tight muscles.

"Good to have you two back, Ash," Brock whispered, and Ash felt a small grin come onto his face, knowing how worried Brock had been about them. He struggled to catch a glimpse of the breeder over his shoulder.

"It's great to be back…" Ash trailed off, for Max was squatting down next to Ash's knees and Pikachu was anxiously holding out a furry yellow paw for his master from Max's shoulder. Ash gently took the paw in his hand with a wide smile and held it, feeling more physical warmth from the electric Pokémon than usual because of his own extremely chilled state. He wondered if he would ever be truly warm again.

Ash was about to motion Pikachu to jump into his lap so he could really give his Pokémon a good hug when a clicking of claws on the ice caused Ash to look up. Sableye slowly joined the rejoicing group, squatting down on the ice next to Max with his elbows on his knees and his long arms hanging limply between his legs. The silver hexagonal eyes would not meet Ash's own eyes at first; instead, the Darkness Pokémon gave Ash's body a long hard look, as if he truly couldn't believe that they were alive. Ash waited patiently, wondering if Sableye was going to speak or not. Finally, the violet Pokémon's eyes rose to meet Ash's own, and found that the newly restored boy was no longer looking at him, but beyond him. A small frown came to Sableye's face as he watched Ash's eyes widen and his mouth slowly open in disbelief, his line of sight never wavering from some spot over Sableye's shoulder. Suddenly, a cold chill ran through the Pokémon's heart, and cautiously, he turned his head around.

One of the singed disembodied hands on the floor was slowly raking its pointed fingers across the ice.

A shout of alarm automatically came out of Sableye's mouth, and he shot up onto his feet quickly, turning to face the soot-covered Ghost- type, whose body was still lying motionless on the ice. Brock, May, Max, and Misty all flinched at the noise, and turned their heads rapidly just in time to see the pointed fingers on the other severed hand raking the icy floor. A collective gasp went up from the entire party. Sableye clenched his razor-sharp teeth in absolute disbelief. _How can this be! How can HE possibly be waking up already! HE should have been out of it for hours after taking all of those hits, being soaked in water, then electrocuted at high voltage! HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE! _

As Sableye began to forcefully motion towards the single exit of the dim cavern once more, the group needed no further urging. Swiftly, Brock hauled Ash off of the floor into a standing position, even as Ash winced terribly. "Hurry!" Brock shouted, as May struggled to help Misty stand up while holding tightly onto Togepi. "We have to get out of here quickly, before the thing wakes up fully and goes after us again!"

Poochyena started to howl in panic, but Max quickly clapped a hand over the pup's muzzle to silence him. He glanced back at the Haunter, his glasses glinting. "The Haunter's getting up!" he cried out, and Pikachu's sharp claws sank into his shoulder once more. The body of the charred Ghost- type was slowly rising off of the ground, though HIS face was still parallel to the floor. The disembodied hands began to rise along with HIM, and began to tighten into fists.

May began to scream in fear, which only made things worse. Misty almost lost her balance, but Ash managed to fight back his stiffness enough to grasp her left wrist in his right hand. Brock, keeping Ash steady with one hand, pushed off with the other hand, all the while trying to keep an eye on Haunter and an eye on their escape route at the same time. Ash pulled Misty along with him, and May followed, with Max closely bringing up the rear. Sableye clambered after them, almost moving backwards on the ice to keep from turning his back on his greatest nemesis. Haunter was slowly raising HIS head as HIS body continued to rise off of the floor. Suddenly, HE shook HIS head back and forth, scattering soot in every direction. Then, HE looked up, straight into Sableye's eyes.

The vermilion glow rimming HIS eyes had flared larger in pure wrath.

"GO!" Sableye screamed one more time. The rest of the group was at the exit, sliding across the ice as fast as they could without falling down. May was still screaming her head off, as if in the middle of a nightmare, causing Togepi to tremble in her arms and sniff back tiny tears. All of his sister's noise had flustered Max, and a cry of anxiety burst through his lips too. Misty had not quite recovered her normal breathing pattern yet, so she was panting heavily. As soon as possible, Ash let go over her wrist to grab her hand instead, and felt her fingers dig deep into his fingerless gloves. Brock no longer allowed himself a backwards glance; he had eyes only for getting through the exit. He tried to shout a few words of encouragement, but his heart was pounding so loud that he had no idea if he actually said anything or not.

Sableye gave a quick glance at the turn in the tunnel where the humans and their Pokémon had been headed. They were gone. Sableye turned his eyes back to Haunter, quickly making his way across the ice to stand in the middle of the opening in order to give Ash, Misty, and the others as much time to get away as he could. _I can still fight HIM if I have to… and I will… no matter what. _Haunter's frightening eyes had never left Sableye, as if HE was hypnotized, and HE continued to move forward through the air. HIS speed was slow and steady, however, which was most likely due to HIS exhaustion, but Sableye was still strongly reminded of some kind of feline Pokémon stalking a Rattata in some bushes. HE was almost swaying back and forth as HE floated, as if to hypnotize Sableye HIMSELF. Then, Sableye remembered something strange. When the two humans that Ash had referred to as 'Team Rocket' had left the cavern screaming, Haunter had rushed to the mouth of the cavern, but had not ventured out. However, this time, Haunter seemed out of HIS mind enough that the Darkness Pokémon felt that whatever had stopped Haunter then would not stop HIM from leaving now. Sableye crouched down low. _All right, Haunter… let's see what kind of power you have left in that ragged body of yours… _

And then, he felt a light tap on his left shoulder. Sableye was almost scared out of his wits, but he managed to keep from jumping. His head whipped around to the left instantly, and he let out a short breath in surprise. It was the frowning Shuppet. During the long battle, Sableye had practically forgotten about the Shuppet, who had hovered next to the wall like a shadow ever since Sableye had screamed for Haunter to show HIMSELF. Now, the Shuppet was fluttering beside his right shoulder again, those striped eyes as expressionless as ever as they bore into Sableye's own. And then, the Shuppet turned away, and with a flutter of its skirt floated into air in front of and above Sableye, directly into Haunter's path.

Sableye watched it, blankly at first, as it turned its eyes toward the advancing Ghost- type, and stayed where it was in the air. Sableye felt as if he ought to shout a warning to the Shuppet, for surely it did not know the Evil One's strength, but Sableye had a strange feeling that it knew what it was doing. Suddenly, its skirt quivered violently, and a wave of pastel-colored air burst from the point on the top of its head like the aurora borealis. Sableye actually took a step back in awe as the translucent, wavering colors quickly made a wall of marble-patterned air between it and Haunter across the entire cavern. Haunter seemed to find this development irritating, for HE let out a roar of anger, and sped up HIS flight. When HE hit the wall of color, however, HE was immediately met by some force that propelled HIM several feet backwards through the air. Haunter roared once more, and tried to get through again, but to no avail. The Ghost- type was effectively trapped.

Shuppet had used Protect.

Sableye almost fainted in shock at this totally unexpected discovery, though a moment later, he would suppose that he had better reason to faint. The frowning Shuppet turned its face around to stare down at Sableye through unreadable eyes.

"Save them."

The Darkness Pokémon's heart almost stopped. The Shuppet had spoken for the first time, and the voice the Shuppet had spoken with so calm, so even, and yet so mysteriously angelic that it reminded Sableye of church bells. Sableye felt his face grow extremely hot and his mouth hang open slightly for some reason, even though the Shuppet continued to stare at him with emotionless eyes and a light frown. Sableye gulped slightly, quite flustered, his feet moving backwards towards the exit to follow the Shuppet's command though he really wanted to stay to see if he could hear that gentle, undeniably _female_ voice one more time. However, a flutter of a skirt immediately sent Sableye scurrying across the ice around the bend after the group.

Shuppet turned back to her Protect attack, and though she did not lose her frown, from the way her eyes narrowed at the Haunter scratching wildly at pastel-hued air, one might think she was actually laughing.

By the time Sableye had caught up with the humans and their Pokémon by means of a shortcut climb across the slick marble walls, they were just exiting the next cavern after the ice slide. They were all visibly happy to see Sableye again, even as they continued to quickly make their way from stalagmite to stalagmite across the icy floors.

"Is the Haunter still following us, Sableye?" Brock managed to ask as they went. Sableye was glad that he could truly answer with a shake of his head.

"Good!" Max said in relief. May seemed to have quieted down, though her bottom lip was trembling.

Ash saw the puzzled look that Sableye was suddenly giving him, and after a moment of thought, realized the Darkness Pokémon's question. "Luckily, I have a Bayleef and May has a Beautifly," he explained, though their speedy progression was taking his breath away. "We used Bayleef's Vine Whip to lift ourselves over that ice slide, and used the stickiness of Beautifly's String Shot on Bayleef's feet to keep Bayleef from slipping on the ice, though I don't think Bayleef liked that part very much."

The rest of the journey through the caverns was quiet but for the slight sound of feet sliding across ice. Ash kept his hand in Misty's the entire time, though none of the others seemed to notice. They did not stop to rest, or even to let Ash and Misty get their Pokémon and their backpacks back, though they were all overly exhausted by the time they slid through a cavern opening and the million-colored crystalfall glinted softly in the light. Sliding into the middle of the cavern, the group finally came to a halt to catch their breath.

May was panting in a dramatic manner. "That Haunter couldn't chase us all the way here, could HE?" she said, almost collapsing with her free arm around a stalagmite.

Sableye stared up at the crystals. _Surely that Protect will keep HIM down there long enough to get these guys out of the caverns… _His mind went to Shuppet. He hoped she was all right. His face got hot again.

It was quiet, with the faint echo of heavy breathing as the only noise. Then, from Max's shoulder, Pikachu's ears shot straight up in the air. "Pi?"

Ash and Misty had been standing back to back, leaning on each other to rest, but at Pikachu's voice, Misty felt her soulmate stiffen. Ash glanced at his Pokémon warily. "Pikachu, do you… sense something?" Suddenly, Pikachu pinned his ears back against his body, his tail went up, and a few sparks shot out of his cheeks. A growl sounded deep from his furry body. In an instant, everyone knew what this meant.

"…Oh, come ON already!" May cried in exasperation, but it was too late.

Haunter already was hovering in the doorway to the cavern.

_SHOOT! _Sableye thought frantically. Haunter seemed to have withdrawn into HIMSELF for some reason, with HIS disembodied hands tucked close to HIS body and HIS eyes barely open in miniscule slits, but HE was still clearly enraged. _What happened to Shuppet! If you use Protect several times in a row, it weakens each time, but did she have to use so many that Haunter was able to finally break through? I hope HE didn't hurt her… _Sableye crouched into his battle stance. Ash and Misty, standing back to back, just happened to be the ones closest to the doorway and Haunter; Sableye was sure the Ghost- type would go for them, HIS escaped victims, first. He waited to see what Haunter's first move would be… and waited… and waited.

Everyone in the cavern had frozen upon HIS entrance, but Haunter hadn't done anything but float in the opening, HIS lavender body still badly singed though no longer smoking. And suddenly, Sableye realized that there was something wrong. Haunter wasn't acting like HIS normal self. HIS withdrawnness was a first, and so was the fact that HIS eyes were nearly shut. The Darkness Pokémon's mind was churning, closely watching Haunter float there as if HE were nervous or… afraid of something…

Sableye glanced around quickly to see if Haunter was looking at anything in particular, and his eyes fell on the crystalfall. Even though the Flash light in this cavern was not as bright as in other caverns, the light still glinted off of the crystals, making them sparkle. And suddenly, everything clicked. He knew what Haunter's weakness was.

It was light.

Sableye could never remember seeing Haunter venture outside of the last cavern before now for the last cavern was the only place in the whole cavern network that was the darkest of the caverns, which is why Haunter had made HIS home there. When the 'Team Rocket' had fled, Haunter had only chased them to the mouth of the last cavern because, around the bend, the light had increased. And when Pikachu had first charged up his Thunderbolt, Haunter had frozen in mid-air because HE had closed HIS eyes against the light of the electricity. It all made sense. Haunter had been so desperate to get back at Ash, Misty, and the others that, even though the light caused HIM pain, HE had ventured out of the last cavern to seek them. However, HE had had to float through so many well-lit caverns that, by this point, HIS previous injuries and the light had almost paralyzed HIM, causing HIM to shrink into HIMSELF. HE was basically helpless.

And now, Sableye thought, if only he could find a way to communicate this to the others, then they might be able to finish HIM off once and for all. Ash's eyes hadn't left the Haunter once since HIS entrance, but when he heard Sableye's voice behind him, something made him think that the Darkness Pokémon was calling his name. Out of the corner of his eyes, Ash saw Sableye pointing frantically to the crystalfall, then to Haunter. Ash frowned for a moment, but as the crystals sparkled, Ash seemed to think of something and gave the floating Haunter another look. A moment later, Sableye heard Ash give a short gasp, and he knew the boy realized his message. Now it was Ash's turn to figure out a way to apply this new discovery. He could hear his soulmate breathing heavily as she leaned her back against his, and he began to fret. They had to finish this now, or they all might collapse from exhaustion. He started to slip one of his hands behind himself to find her hand, hoping to reassure her, but instead, his palm brushed the pocket of his vest she was wearing. Ash felt something hard inside of the pocket, and realizing what it was, he got an idea.

To avoid catching Haunter's attention just yet, Ash made sure to whisper. "Misty, slowly get the crystal I gave you out of the pocket, okay?" After a moment, Ash felt her nod gently, not questioning him, and felt her arm moving. Slowly, Ash reached down into his jeans pocket and enclosed his hand around the russet crystal, Misty's gift to him. Withdrawing it cautiously, Ash felt as though Haunter turned HIS squinting gaze towards him, but the Ghost- type didn't move. With the crystal safely out of his pocket, Ash stretched his arm out straight towards Haunter, pointing the crystal at HIM as if it were a gun. A moment later, Misty copied him, her arm touching his all the way down, and the tips of their crystals touching at the point. Haunter seemed to draw backwards in uncertainty. Ash felt all of the eyes in the cavern on him. He prayed his idea worked.

Suddenly, Ash shouted. "Pikachu! Use Flash, and aim it straight at the crystals!" Ash knew his faithful Pokémon wouldn't hesitate at such a direct order, and Pikachu didn't. From Max's shoulder, the electric mouse let out a cry, and two beams of light shot from his cheeks and merged as one, just in time to hit the crystals.

Instantly, the room was plunged into the most intense brightness Ash had ever seen. The russet- and marine- hued light made every person and Pokémon in the cavern cry out and shut their eyes tightly, though the light penetrated their eyelids. Haunter's scream sounded above the rest. A moment later, however, and it was all over. As soon as Ash was able to open his eyes again, he glanced to the doorway.

Haunter was gone.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

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There are two chapters left. And they WILL be posted this summer. Cross my heart, hope to die, and everything like that! Thank you!

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 11's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter.


	12. Never Know What’s Round The Bend

I had predicted that this chapter would be finished by the middle of July. And guess what? It's the middle of July and it's finished! Yea! …Okay, so a month is still a long time, but not even as close to being as long as the way-over-a-year wait for Chapter 11. Anyway, here it is: the second-to-last chapter. I'm on a roll, so I hope the last chapter will come along even quicker (especially as I've been DYING to write the last chapter for so long… hee, hee, hee…)! 

Thank you to everyone for all of the wonderful reviews for Chapter 11! I was actually surprised how few people got on my case, and how many welcomed me back with open arms! You have no idea how happy that made me! I hope this chapter won't disappoint, though I doubt it will. And please, I beg of you, KEEP REVIEWING! I am the kind of artist who is never happy with her own work unless she knows she has touched someone in some way by either teaching them something, making them think, or just making them happy; I live and breathe for feedback. Thanks again!

And, of course, Chapter 10's title of "…a world of magic at your command…" comes from the song _Pokémon (Dance Mix)_ from the Pokémon: 2 B A Master CD. Congratulations to these reviewers for guessing correctly: Chaos-Paladin, J.C. the Wabbit, Stacee, MP, Stukov The One, and (close enough) Soft Flame Matthias.

On to the story!

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**CHAPTER 12: …Never Know What's Round The Bend…**

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Misty let a loud sigh of relief escape her mouth as she collapsed in fatigue in the snow. After a moment, she sat up, though it was peculiarly difficult to do so. She wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her chin on her knees, trying to give herself a chance to catch her breath. It felt so strange to be breathing, which she realized a moment later was actually a really scary thought, but it was true nevertheless. Strangely enough, it also felt odd to touch physical things, like when she brushed a damp stalagmite with the tips of her fingers. However, Misty knew instinctly that she wasn't one hundred percent yet after studying the palm of her hand that was not tightly grasping the aquatic crystal. Her skin was still milky white all over, though as Ash collapsed into the snow to her left, he told her in a concerned whisper that her face was slightly pink from overexertion. Even the flurries packed tightly against her bare legs didn't faze her as it had before. She knew that her body had to be exceptionally numb at the moment for, even as she felt the cold, it wasn't as biting as it had been before her soul had been taken from her body.

Brock sank tiredly into the flurries across from Ash and Misty, and May quickly followed suit, plopping down into the snow on his right. After Pikachu jumped off of his shoulder, Max flopped wearily into the white snowflakes with a small groan and unthinkingly leaned his head against his sister's right shoulder. Poochyena leapt gently out of his master's lax arms and was promptly swallowed up to his ears by snow. In May's lap, Togepi trilled for a moment, then let her chirping trail off. The whole group was silent for several long minutes, save for their deep breathing.

After his heart rate had returned to normal, Brock glanced up. Sableye was just joining them, squatting down in the cold flurries to Misty's right. After they had finally arrived in the third main cavern, the giant round grotto with the icy slide along the edge, Sableye had stood at the entrance for what seemed like an eternity, just staring into the tunnel they had come from while the rest of them made it to the middle of the cavern before stopping.

Brock wondered if Sableye was still paranoid about the Haunter. He savagely tried to convince himself that the murderous lavender Ghost- type had been utterly destroyed by the light from Ash and Misty's crystals, and at first, Brock still had a nagging feeling that something still wasn't right. But, after glancing over at Misty, who was turning her crystal over gently in her hand before slipping it back into the pocket of the vest she was wearing, and seeing the tranquil smile on her face, Brock changed his mind. There was no possible way that Haunter would ever be able to come back, not after the intense battling and the brilliant light display. It wasn't possible.

Sableye, however, didn't seem to share this notion. His violet forehead was still creased with wrinkles, and his silver hexagonal eyes were staring down at the snow in deep thought. He swirled the flurries in front of him with a pointed claw. The expression on his face wasn't fear or anxiety, though; Sableye merely looked perplexed. Brock considered asking Sableye's opinion on the matter. _But later. Right now, I have much more important things to say to him._

Letting out the breath he had been holding, Brock shot a grin at Sableye, who smiled dryly back after finally looking up from the snow. "I don't even know what to say," Brock finally spoke, after a long moment. Slightly startled, the other people and Pokémon looked up at the breeder, then at Sableye. Brock was shaking his head in amused disbelief. "There are no words I could say to tell you how thankful I am for all of your help."

Immediately, the other four people in the group began to profoundly thank Sableye over and over again, even as the Darkness Pokémon's eyes widened in surprise and he tried to dismiss the enthusiastic praise with raised paws and a shaking head. Brock could tell that Sableye was quite self-conscious and not used to such high compliments. His embarrassed face kept whipping from one person to the next as they thanked him.

"We would have never been able to beat that Haunter without your help!" May insisted.

"Yeah, and your attacks were so awesome, and you knew just the right strategies!" Max said excitedly, his caramel eyes glinting behind his glasses as he sat up straighter.

"Sableye," Ash spoke with a wiry apologetic smile on his face, "Thank you for not giving up on us, even after we didn't leave that last cavern when you told us to."

"And thank you so much for helping us to understand exactly what was going on when that… thing separated us from our bodies," Misty added softly.

As Sableye looked away from Misty, blushing furiously from all of the attention, he found himself face-to-face with the yellow electric mouse. With Sableye squatting in the snow and Pikachu standing on his back paws, the two Pokémon were on the same eye level. For several silent moments, the two Pokémon stared at each other, small black eyes penetrating silver hexagonal ones, before a solemn Pikachu held for a paw with a quiet "Chu."

A short hesitation later, and a violet paw extended to take the yellow one, and the Mouse Pokémon and the Darkness Pokémon shook hands like proper gentleman. However, after a moment, Sableye found Pikachu's short arms around his neck in a tight hug, thanking the half Ghost, half Dark- type with all of his strength. Sableye cautiously embraced the emotional Pokémon back. _Yes, _he thought, as Pikachu released him, and was suddenly bounding through the snow towards Ash, _He and the boy are just like… my master and I. They have the same concern and affection, the same understanding and devotion for each other as we did…as we do, even now… _

"Pikachu!" Ash couldn't stop his voice from crying out as his first Pokémon came rushing into his outstretched arms in a blur of yellow fur. As the Electric Pokémon landed in his arms with his own cry of joy, Ash was knocked backwards into the snow with a muffled "Oomph!" Ash could hear the happy laughter of his friends as the nose of his closest Pokémon companion nuzzled his cold cheek and warmth spread across his chest from contact with Pikachu's little electrified body. He had been so sure, so positive that he would never have Pikachu as his battling partner again. And yet, here they were. Cold and worn out for sure, but alive and safe just the same. He held tightly onto Pikachu with both arms wrapped around the Pokémon, as if Pikachu was a stuffed toy, and finally sat up again with many cold snowflakes now stuck to the back of his shirt and his hat.

As the friendly laughter died down, May turned to the other girl of the group. "Hey, Misty," she asked curiously, "I was wondering… how did you know what was going on with you and Ash being ghosts? …How did Sableye tell you things?"

Brock watched in interest as Misty turned her head to the younger girl, short orange hair rustling around her face. Something had definitely changed between the two girls since the day before, for Misty no longer seemed hostile at all. The older girl looked thoughtful for a moment, then replied, "Well, mostly, Ash and I found out about our situation through the poem."

"Poem?" Max asked, turning away from watching Poochyena rolling around in a snowdrift. "What poem?"

"There was a poem scratched into the wall," Ash replied, petting the yellow Pokémon that had latched himself possessively onto Ash's black shirt. "It was in the second cavern, though it was so high up on the wall that we didn't see it until we went back to that cavern as spirits."

"That's right," Brock said, remembering, "I saw that something was up there, but we didn't have a chance to see what it was because we had to hurry down to that last cavern."

"By the way, Sableye," Ash said, turning to the Darkness Pokémon, "You wrote the poem yourself, didn't you?" Blinking, Sableye nodded.

"Really?" Max was paying very close attention now.

"Yeah," Ash answered with a nod. "It was a long poem, too. With six verses. …And it rhymed."

"Wow!" The bespectacled boy looked excited at this discovery. "That's awesome Sableye! Then, not only can you read in English, but you can write too!" Nodding meekly, Sableye looked very embarrassed once more. "You're really smart, Sableye!" The violet paws came up once again to dismiss the high compliments as Sableye grinned modestly. Max glanced over at Poochyena, who was lying on his back in the snow and kicking his paws in the air. He knew that the pup wasn't stupid, but… _I wish I had a really amazing Pokémon like Sableye._ After a moment, Max turned to Ash and Misty. "What was the poem about?" he questioned eagerly.

"Well, it talked about…" Misty thought hard, and realized that she knew most of the words by heart. "It said to not to go any farther into the caverns, even though they're so beautiful, or the 'Evil One', which is Haunter of course, would 'bring you death.'" Misty thought again, and continued, "Then it said that, if the Haunter took your soul from your body, that you had an hour to defeat HIM and break the 'ghostly spell'. If you didn't defeat HIM in an hour, then you would be a spirit… forever."

A collective look of shock came over Brock, May, and Max's faces. _There really was a time limit, then… _he thought, staring in horrified amazement at Ash and Misty. _An hour… only an hour… Wait a minute- _Suddenly, Brock realized why Sableye was staring at the snow in such perplexity. _There's no way… there's just no way that we defeated Haunter within an hour after Ash and Misty were separated from their bodies. If you consider what Team Rocket said when we found them by the hole outside, then after Ash and Misty became spirits, they must have left the last cavern, found Team Rocket, took those two back to the last cavern, let Team Rocket go, then came all of the way back to the first cavern where they found me, May, and Max. Then, the five of us had to go all of the way back down to the last cavern, where we had that really long battle with Haunter before Ash and Misty were even able to return to their bodies. _Brock glanced over at Sableye, who had taken to staring at the large rock positioned against the wall of the cavern. The violet Pokémon seemed to be thinking about the same thing as Brock was again. _There's no way that took under an hour to accomplish…_

_So how are Ash and Misty still alive?_

"Only an hour!" Max asked Misty disbelievingly, but Sableye was the one who answered with an uncertain nod of his head. Brock stared at Sableye, then down at the snow blankly. _How… how could that work?…_

After a moment of heavy silence, May finally prompted, "Did Sableye's poem say anything else?"

"Well," Misty said, "…When we were spirits, we knew that you all wouldn't be able to see or hear us from other lines in the poem, and…"

Suddenly, the last two lines of the fifth verse of the poem made perfect sense in Misty's mind, and Misty felt her face turn hot. _'Only living soul mate hear their ghostly other's call'… Oh my Ho-oh. That's… that's what happened when… when Brock, Ash, and I were all in Lavender Town that time_. _Ash's soul was out of his body that time, and I was still in mine. And before he went and scared me to death by picking me up off of the ground, I remember hearing a voice saying, 'So Misty, you're really worried about me!' That was Ash, but when I asked Brock if he had heard the voice too, he said he hadn't heard anything. So, according to the poem, I was the only one that could ever hear Ash calling to me if he is out of his body because… we've been soul mates this entire time... _Misty knew that her face had to be bright pink now, despite her still-pale skin. _…I'm definitely going to have to tell that to Ash later._

"Well?" May's mischievous voice dragged the older girl away from her revelations.

"Eh?" Misty said, her voice high-pitched. May was giving her an all-knowing kind of look, and a sly smile was creeping up on the coordinator's face._ Shoot! Now what!_ "Uh, well… that was really about it for the poem. …It's a really good poem, too, even though it talks about some pretty scary stuff." May raised an eyebrow in mock questioning. Misty's face felt hot.

Abruptly, Brock interjected back into the conversation after obviously not paying attention. "But that's impossible," Brock suddenly said, and everyone turned to him instantly. "…About the hour for a person to return to their body. …It had to have been more than an hour by the time we met Ash and Misty in the first cavern, not to mention everything else that happened after…"

"That's what Misty and I thought, too," Ash said with a nod, feeling Pikachu shiver in his arms with the thought of what might have been. "We were sure that at least an hour had gone by, but…" Ash turned his head to face Sableye, and the others followed suit. However, Sableye was not looking at them, but at the snow in front of him once more.

"Are you sure about that time limit, Sableye?" May asked, wary of sounding distrustful, but Sableye still didn't look up.

"Where did you learn about a time limit, Sableye?" Misty asked in her gentlest voice. Finally, the Darkness Pokémon looked up solemnly and slowly drew a line in the air across his left eye with a pointed claw, mimicking a scar.

"From Haunter HIMSELF?" Brock asked incredulously. Sableye looked away again, but nodded, making Brock feel bad for asking. He could see that Sableye obviously didn't want to bring up the murderous monster if it all possible. _I bet… I bet Sableye has been stuck down here with that Haunter for some time… but why he doesn't just leave, I don't know…he could, after all, with his excellent climbing abilities…_

"Well, then," May said cautiously, breaking the awkward silence, "Maybe that evil thing lied to you, Sableye. Is that possible?" Sableye shrugged, but Brock could tell that Sableye didn't really think the Ghost- type had lied, though he seemed to be considering it.

Sableye swirled a claw around in the snow again. _Maybe… Maybe HE did lie… but that doesn't seem like HIM… But if HE did lie, then… there could have been a chance… there would have been a chance for me to… maybe there is still a chance to… No… Certainly by now it's impossible… after all this time… But maybe Haunter didn't lie, and HE doesn't even know the truth HIMSELF… Maybe HE believes the time limit to be the truth, but it isn't… It could be just another Pokémon fable, told by mother Gengar to small Gastly to keep them from leaving a person's soul out of their body forever should they ever evolve into Haunter with the ability to separate souls and bodies… _

"Maybe…" Max thought to himself out loud, "Maybe the time limit was extended because of this environment." When his sister shot him an exasperated-sibling glare, Max insisted, "Well, maybe the time limit has to do with the fact that a person can only be brought back to life for a certain amount of time after their heart stops beating. Usually, a person can only be resurrected up to a few minutes after their heart stops because, after that, their brain cells start to die and rigor mortis sets in-"

"BRAINIAC!" An agitated May felt the need to interrupt her little brother's intelligential lecture, but Max ignored her and went on.

"-but maybe, because it's only the soul that's being taken out by a Haunter, a person's body can be left unattended for up to an hour before all of that dead-body stuff starts to happen," he concluded, internally preening at his well-rounded knowledge.

"But even that doesn't solve how Ash and Misty are still alive right now if the hour was up," Brock retorted thoughtfully. Ash gave a worried glance at Misty, who had seemed to become slightly nauseous at the words 'rigor mortis', making Ash wonder what that meant.

"It does if you take into account the environment like I said," Max responded immediately. "It's all about cryonics."

"WHAT?" May cried out, exasperated. Togepi trilled. "Now you're just making up fancy stuff to say!"

"No, really!" Max replied innocently. "'Cryonics' is a real word! It's the practice of freezing a person who's died of some disease so they can be reawakened in the future when a cure for that disease has been made. It's a relatively new theory and very disputed. A lot of scientists believe it can't work because it's never been successfully done before, but there are some really smart scientists who adamantly believe in it, too. Anyway, it's just like a refrigerator that keeps food from spoiling; these caverns are so cold that the temperature could have extended the amount of time that Ash and Misty's bodies could be uninhabited by their souls before their brain cells start to die and rigor mortis begins."

"That's just gross." May wrinkled her nose, repulsed, then after a moment, peevishly added, "Know-it-all," for good measure.

"It's highly probable, though," Brock reasoned aloud. "It would make sense if we consider the other facts."

_It really would make sense, I suppose, _Sableye thought, his mind weary with possible truths and contradictions. His eyes wandered to the large rock against the wall, knowing what was entombed underneath it. _It is a sure fact that these caverns are cold enough to keep a body preserved. However… if that was true, then… then… then… Oh, I don't know! _Sableye felt extraordinarily frustrated. _Haunter must have lied, and yet… I still have a strange feeling about all of this… Perhaps I'll never know just exactly why these two humans here were able to become living once more. _He glanced around at the group with his silver hexagonal eyes. _But I should let them believe what they want… especially as I don't know what to believe myself. _

"That would explain why I still feel so numb," Misty muttered darkly, "and why I felt so stiff when I first woke up."

"And for both of you, your skin is still very white," Max added, then turned to Brock, "There's a good possibility that they're both going to get really sick with something like pneumonia from overexposure."

"Oh, great," Ash sighed. Pikachu nestled his warm muzzle beneath Ash's chin.

"It could be worse," Max said quickly, "Instead of pneumonia, you could get bronchitis. I had that once and, ugh, it was horrible beyond reason."

"It's true that you both might get really sick," Brock admitted, then turned to Ash and Misty, "We really need to get you guys out of here soon."

"That sounds great," Misty said, sighing. Ash acquiesced with a nod.

For the exhausted group, the next minute or so was spent helping each other to stand back up again. Pikachu finally released Ash's shirt to go help Max dig his Poochyena out of a particularly high snowdrift. After Brock helped him struggle to his aching feet, Ash held a hand out to help Misty stand up, feeling his cheeks grow a little bit hotter through the numbness of his face. After he and Misty had been restored to their bodies, their flight from Haunter and the last battle with the crystals had pushed his warm thoughts to the back of his mind, but things had started to settle down once more and they were getting ready to leave the caverns, so such thoughts quickly came back into his head.

Taking his hand with a shy smile, Misty tried valiantly to lift herself off of the ground, but her cold legs seemed to be beyond her control at the moment. When Brock had turned his back to them to face May and the others, Ash quickly and surreptitiously leaned down and wrapped his arms around Misty's waist as her arms went around his neck and pulled her to her feet. As soon as she was standing, Ash let go and backed up a few paces, an uneasy look visible on his face. A second later, his mind winced at his action. _Oh, man, Misty! Please don't think I let go of you so fast because I don't want to touch you! It's just that… I'm… well, nervous about everything, about us, and then the others, and I don't know what to do yet, what to say, how to act…_ However, Misty had released him just as fast and had looked away from him, the skin under her eyes now vivid pink, and Ash realized that she was obviously thinking the same thing as he was and was not offended by his actions one bit.

After helping a lethargic May to her feet (which ended up being quite the feat), Brock glanced around and saw the strangely jittery looks on Ash and Misty's faces, and was about to ask what was wrong, but his attention was instead caught by the look in Max's eyes. The bespectacled boy's face had become rather drawn, and his caramel eyes were staring at Sableye with a mixture of quiet uncertainty and desperate pleading. The Darkness Pokémon did not seem to know that he was being watched; he had stood up with the rest of them, but his silver hexagonal eyes were fixed on some point in space in deep thought. Brock coughed quietly to catch the young boy's attention and as Max glanced around, slightly startled, Brock raised an eyebrow and tilted his head at Sableye. Max looked embarrassed, but Brock nodded at him with a small smile on his face. _I know what you want to say, Max, so go for it… my advice is to go ahead and ask, because this will be your last chance… you should know that already, after hearing the way you advised me last night on worrying about what choices to make…_

Max turned his head slowly to face Sableye again, nervousness in his eyes. After a moment, though, he seemed to resolve himself somewhat, and he apprehensively cleared his throat just loud enough for Sableye to hear. Sableye turned his face to Max blankly, and tilted his head in question. Max bit his lip gently, but finally spoke quietly, "Uh, Sableye, could I ask you an… an important question?"

The whole group, person and Pokémon alike, turned to face Max, curious looks on their faces, and Brock saw the young boy become even more nervous. After a moment, Sableye nodded, despite the fact that the Darkness Pokémon seemed a bit wary about what Max might ask about.

"Um, well…" Max's eyes shifted to the snow, the walls, anything but Sableye, "I was wondering… if… maybe… if maybe you would… Do you think that… Do you think that you might want to come with us, Sableye?"

The violet Pokémon's eyes widened, clearly not expecting this question. Ash, Misty, and May's eyes widened in surprise as well, but they all immediately grinned in agreement, and Brock almost chuckled at their enthusiasm as he grinned himself. Pikachu's ears perked up, Togepi waved her tiny paws, and Poochyena yipped.

"What I mean to say," Max continued, rushing his words and finally looking Sableye in the eyes, "is that I was hoping that maybe, if you wanted to, you could come along with us on our journey. I mean, you would definitely be welcome and all, especially since you helped Ash and Misty to get their souls back in their bodies and helped us battle that evil thing in the last cavern. And all of our Pokémon would definitely love for you to come with us, too. You'd fit right in with us, Sableye. And you could… you could…" He faltered, biting his lip nervously.

"Yeah!" May said in excitement, and Togepi trilled in her arms, "That'd be so cool! And you could be Max's Pokémon, too, because-"

"Stop it, sis!" Max yelled at his older sibling, face flushed in embarrassment. Turning back and seeing Sableye's rather quizzical look, Max shyly explained, "…Well, you see, Sableye, I only have Poochyena right now-" The pup barked. "-and I'm not really allowed to have Pokémon to battle with yet, because I'm two years too young, so Poochyena is like my pet. But when I'm old enough to be a trainer, I'm hoping to train a team of all Dark- type Pokémon, because I think they're just the coolest, and so Poochyena'd be my first Dark- type Pokémon. But since you're part Dark- type, and you don't have a trainer, and you're down here all by yourself, I thought maybe… you'd like to come with me… and be part of my Pokémon team in the future…" Max's voice had gained a desperate tone. "…You're already so good at battling, and so strong… but I promise that I'll be the best trainer I can be, and I wouldn't put you in a Pokéball if you didn't want me to, and we could… be best friends…"

A sense of enthusiastic anticipation filled the members of the group. The last Pokémon that had joined their group had been Poochyena, and that had been a while ago.

However, the Darkness Pokémon was feeling anything but excited.

Sableye felt his bottom lip throbbing from where his razor sharp teeth were biting into it. _The thing is, young Max… I… I do already have a trainer, and I am not completely down in these caverns by myself… If only… If only I was a wild Pokémon… If I had never know what it felt like to become attached to one human being the way I am now… I would come with you, all of you, without a second thought… All of you are such wonderful people and Pokémon that I would love to get to know better and to be best friends with… but… I… _

His mind told him he was truly free. He was, technically and by all definition, wild. His master had died, and with his death, Sableye had been freed of his unspoken obligations to serve him. Though he had stayed in the caverns with the remains of his master so far, he knew that he could go now, live in the wild or even find a new trainer. He had promised himself that he would not leave until he had stopped Haunter, and now, Haunter had been stopped and the goal attained.

And yet, his heart told him he was not free; he would never be free from his beloved bondage. He remembered stories, in books that his master had read him and that he had read himself, about the fabulous Pokémon of old, Pokémon who lived - and died - by the rules of chivalry and devotion. He knew of Meowth and Delcatty that would be buried alive with their deceased masters by their own choice, back in the days of pyramids and mummies. He knew of Growlithe and Houndour that stayed by their master in combat even if it cost them their lives during the Johtoian Wars. He knew of Ninetales that would faithfully watch over their master's mansion while their master went away, and that continued to stand guard though their master never returned even after centuries had passed. He knew the many stories about those kinds of Pokémon, devoted and loyal to their masters, their precious humans, even when their masters were no longer with them and the Pokémon was free to live its own life.

And Sableye knew that he was one of those Pokémon.

Slowly, he shook his head. He couldn't leave.

A hoarse noise escaped Max's throat. "You… don't want…"

Quickly, a flustered Sableye held up his claws. _Please… please don't take it the wrong way! _

"You do want to come with us," Ash suddenly spoke up, "but… you can't?" Cautiously, Sableye nodded.

"BUT… BUT… WHY NOT!" Max cried out suddenly, startling everyone, and May was surprised to find tears in the corners of her brother's caramel eyes. While it was true that it was not often that a Pokémon refused to join their group when asked, it had happened before, and May found herself a bit upset at her brother. He should know good and well that it was not possible for every Pokémon they met to join them for one reason or another; sometimes, the Pokémon had promises to uphold to others, duties that had not yet been fulfilled, another trainer already that the group had yet to meet, or sometimes they simply wanted to remain free. This same thing had happened to Max during the Jirachi incident, but maybe, May suddenly considered, the fact that he was not able to keep an awesome Pokémon and friend like Jirachi was the reason that he seemed more upset than she would have thought he would be. After all, Max had clearly become adamant that he wanted an all Dark- type team, and this awesome Sableye fit the bill perfectly.

May tried to soothe her trembling younger brother by placing a hand gently on his shoulder and speaking softly. "Max, don't cry. He's not trying to hurt your feel-"

"You don't understand!" Max yelled at her suddenly, his forehead wrinkled in stress. "You don't understand! Why…" His face turned slowly back to face Sableye, and saw that the violet Pokémon was looking quite distressed and sorrowful. Suddenly, Max felt ashamed, and he bit his lip and stared morosely at the snow. He didn't want to act like a spoiled brat, not the way he had used to before he and May had joined the group. Still, he couldn't keep from quietly asking, "You… You're not forced to stay in these caverns, are you, Sableye? I mean, no one's keeping you here, right?"

Sableye shook his head as if he wasn't sure of how to answer, but his long glance over his shoulder at the tunnel that would lead him back to the last cavern told them what they needed to know. _The only one keeping Sableye here is himself. He's not finished with something yet, _Brock thought, crossing his arms silently. _There is something that Sableye doesn't want to leave undone… _

_Poor Max. _Misty looked at the downcast boy in sympathy. _But I know what it must be like for Sableye: to want to go with someone and be with them, but not being able to because you have other responsibilities and things to attend to. It's like when I was stuck being gym leader at the Cerulean City gym, while Ash went on to Hoenn without the rest of us… It was absolutely horrible, but if I had not been the gym leader, so many other trainers would have never been able to battle for badges to get into the Pokémon league. _She exchanged a look with Ash; they seemed to be thinking the same thing. Ash glanced back at Sableye and Max standing quietly in the snow. _I wish Sableye had said 'yes', but… for some reason, I had a feeling that he would say 'no'. _

_I… I just can't… I'm sorry, Max… And I know you'll be a good trainer someday… _Sableye tried to smile at Max, and the bespectacled boy smiled back, though the smile was small and reluctant. _I… my master still needs me, and he always will… And I must check on Shuppet to make sure that it… she… is okay after the battle… and… _

"Okay, then," Max finally spoke, resolute but quiet. "Well… I hope… that… You take care of yourself, okay, Sableye? …And take care of all of those Shuppet in the last cavern, too." The violet Pokémon nodded seriously. "Good." The moment of silence that followed was awkward for all of them.

"…We… better be off now, guys," Brock said quietly, shifting his backpack restlessly. "I really want to get you two, Ash and Misty, to a hospital or Pokémon Center to check for any problems that the coldness of these caverns might have caused for your health."

"Yeah," Ash nodded, and turning to the Darkness Pokémon, "Goodbye, Sableye. Thank you so much for everything."

"Yes," Misty went to Sableye and gave him a quick hug, which he returned shyly. "Thank you so much for saving me and Ash. We'll never forget you."

"That's right," May chirped, "We'll never forget you, ever! Good luck with… whatever you do from now on!"

"Goodbye, Sableye!" Max finally called out, hesitantly smiling and waving as the Darkness Pokémon began to back away from the group. The rest of the group began to furiously wave, too, and with an embarrassed grin, Sableye waved back, then turned towards the exit to the ice-floored tunnels and began to walk away.

Brock was about to shout a farewell himself, when he suddenly remembered what he had wanted to ask earlier. "Hey, Sableye!" he called out quickly, and Sableye paused and glanced over his shoulder. Brock was silent for a moment, his eyes lingering on the image of the lanky violet Darkness Pokémon standing against the background of all white. The jewels on Sableye's back glinted in the light. _I understand Max's disappointment… Everything about Sableye is so unique… his tall body, his intelligence, his battling strength, and, most of all, his courage and heroism… He's anything but ordinary… _Brock thought around for the easiest way to phrase his question, but finding none, he simply asked. "Sableye, do you think… that Haunter's gone for good?"

The slight intakes of breath around him made Brock realize that the others had seemed to have had no doubts that Haunter had been completely eliminated. He watched Sableye's silver hexagonal eyes, and could see that the Pokémon was thinking hard.

_No. HE is not. …The Evil One is not gone for good… We have stopped HIM, but only for the time being… For a moment, after HE disappeared during the crystals' light display, I had thought that HIS weakness had been so great that it had completely and utterly destroyed HIM… But I have this feeling… nothing more than a weird feeling… but it's enough to convince me that HE is still alive somehow… hiding somewhere, trying to recover from HIS blindness… HE is somewhere in these caverns, I know it, because, between the time of Noctowl's attack and the time of the light display, it is possible that the effects of Foresight could have worn off enough for HIM to Teleport just one time. It would have been enough to get HIM out of the fray… But… _Sableye glanced around at the group, all of their eyes on him.

_They need to leave this cold environment, for their health' sake… so they need never know HE is not completely gone. They did their part in my war against HIM. They exposed HIS ultimate weakness and have left HIM helpless… In the least, I will redouble my efforts to learn more about HIM. Whatever else happens, I want to know just what it is that is driving HIS madness… and where that scar across HIS eye came from… But if I can hunt HIM down, surely I will be able to destroy HIM myself… or at least keep HIM at bay. After all, if one can keep Evil from gaining power, it may never regain control, so all of this group's struggles will not be in vain… It will all be worth it, however my warfare against Haunter concludes. _Sableye's eyes trailed across each member of the party silently. Then, he smiled, showing just a bit of his razor teeth, and shrugged noncommittally. After a moment, all five of the humans smiled back, warily at first, then genuinely. Max began to furiously wave once more, and the others followed suit, as Sableye turned away and continued through the snow and into the tunnel away from them.

"Goodbye. Thanks again, Sableye, and take care," Brock said quietly whispered to himself like a prayer, and waved until the only image of Sableye left was the one locked in their memories.

The giant cavern was completely silent for several minutes, each person lost in their own thoughts. Thoughts about Sableye, about Haunter, about the poem and what they had learned from it, about the crystalfall, about the caverns, about the long battle with HIM, and (for two members of the group) about their soulmate drifted through their minds as they stood in the calm after the storm of commotion, eyes staring out blankly at the marble-patterned walls around them.

The serenity of the moment caused Misty to momentarily forget that only she and Ash knew of the changes that had occurred between them while resting on the crystalfall as spirits; feeling Ash's presence very close behind her, she let herself lean back gently until her back touched his chest and she rested that way, her face warm and her lips smiling happily. Ash seemed to forget the others' unknowingness, too, and let his right hand gently rest on her waist to stead her from causing them to lean too far and fall down. Pikachu, standing in the snow next to his master, just happened to glance up and catch sight of the pair. The Electric Pokémon's ears pinned back in question, and he cocked his head, innocently perplexed. The two were acting extremely unusual.

As she stared out at the cavern, May mindlessly hugged her crossed arms closer to her body, but quickly came back into the moment as she heard a short trill. Glancing down, she realized that she still held Misty's Togepi in her arms; so much had been going on that May hadn't had a chance to give the baby Pokémon back to her trainer yet. As she turned to Misty to apologize for not returning Togepi sooner, her voice caught in her throat and, for once, she was entirely speechless.

As Misty continued to lean against Ash and as both stayed unaware of the younger girl's stare, May's eyebrows rose in amazement, and not long after, a sneaky grin began to creep onto her face. _Ah… well what have we here? This is quite a turn of events… Obviously, Brock, Max, and I have missed something MAJOR while the group was separated… What have they been up to, eh? _Her sneaky grin grew more mischievous. _…Hmmm… Did I even really have to tell Misty about my loving Brendan and not Ash? Those two seem to be getting along a lot better right now… a whole lot! Look how she's leaning against him… Oh, it's so cute! I wish I had a camera! Did something finally happen between you two, Misty? It must have! 'Been cuddling up against the cold down here, eh? _May didn't know how right she was.

A quick glance told May that, besides herself and Pikachu, no one seemed to have spotted the pair's unusual position, and because May had suddenly found herself in an impish sort of mood, she felt it her utmost obligation and duty to call attention to the abnormality. "Hey, Misty!" May called out, her voice dripping with innocence as she took a step towards the girl, "I'm sorry! I forgot that I was still holding Togepi for you…"

The effect was swift and jolting. Immediately, both Ash and Misty's faces whipped around towards May and identical looks of surprise crossed their features. Misty bolted away from Ash's half-embrace as if she had been hit by a rogue Thundershock, and Ash's right hand snapped back to his side as if he'd been stung. Misty watched in horror as May's eyebrows rose and a small playful smile came to her lips. Ash froze, like a Stantler in headlights. Beside him, Pikachu cocked his head in the opposite direction and quietly questioned, "Chu?"

Brock and Max had both turned around to face the others at May's question, but neither had seen the scene that had prompted May's actions. However, Brock was sure he had caught some kind of flurried movement out of the corner of his eye. Max glanced at his sister's face, and his own eyebrows rose in mild fear. _…Oh, boy… Whatever just happened must have been something she really liked… That smile of hers always scares me to death, because you never know just what it is she's thinking or getting ready to do… and it's usually not something good for whoever she's smiling at…_

Brock looked as if he was getting ready to say something, but May beat him to the punch. "Oh, I'm sorry! Did I interrupt something?"

After a moment of unintelligible sputtering, Misty was just able to get out a quick "no" before her voice failed her altogether.

May walked up to Misty with Togepi held out for the older girl to take, her smile growing more mischievous by the second, if that were possible. "Here you go then, Misty!" Misty took her baby Pokémon and clutched her to her chest tightly, her eyes still wide and the skin beneath her eyes slightly pink. Togepi trilled happily at the reunion, but all of Misty's attention was focused on May's scrutinizing eyes, which narrowed then widened in mild surprise at the discovery she had strangely just uncovered. May glanced back up into Misty's eyes and said, with a slightly more teasing tone to her voice, "I like your… change in outfit, by the way. It seems to suit you."

Misty's pink face suddenly started to grow bright red. Ash felt his own face heat up, too. He had totally forgotten that Misty was still wearing his vest and that her hair usually wasn't out of its ponytail the way it was at the moment. Glancing at the others nervously, Ash caught Brock's expression change from mild confusion to disbelieving at what he had obviously just recognized, then to dubious optimism. Max just stared in mystification.

Ash started as May's attention suddenly went to himself. "I suppose you were being quite the gentleman by letting Misty borrow your vest to keep warm, right, Ash? Seeing as it's so cold down here and all, of course."

Ash opened his mouth but nothing came out as his mind was totally blank. Somehow, Misty was able to get out a shaky "Yes, that's right" before her power of speaking failed her once more.

"Uh-huh." May spoke, her voice obviously tinged with unbelief. She continued to smile cheekily. "And I suppose you simply decided to, uh… let your hair down because it was cold, right?" Though both comments were actually true, Misty felt as if her cheeks were about to spontaneously combust. Shifting Togepi to her right arm, she unconsciously fingered a strand of her lose hair with her left hand and nodded shakily at May's last question.

"So… you didn't just let your hair down because, maybe, _someone else_ liked it that way, eh?" May was internally dying with laughter at the emotions her comments were bringing to Misty's face. "Because it is rather pretty down and all." Ash looked as if he might finally be trying to say something, but May quickly threw another question in his direction. "Don't you think so, Ash?"

Brock watched as Ash's cheeks grew as scarlet as Pikachu's. Though he was almost unwilling to believe that something might have changed between Ash and Misty during their absence, May's questioning seemed to be evoking all the right responses out of the two. Max just stared in mystification.

"Okay, what happened?" Brock was suddenly giving them both severe looks, though his cautious excitement seemed to be about to get the best of him.

Misty's face was so red by now that Ash was actually concerned that she might faint under all of the pressure. She seemed to be searching for words, but as she had been doing just that for the past several minutes under May's interrogation, she seemed to not be coming up with anything anymore, not even a syllable. Ash figured it was probably his turn to say something, and that they should probably go ahead and explain everything anyway, so he did the only thing he could think of. He reached for Misty, took her left hand in his right, and stated calmly and quickly to the rest of the group, "Misty is my girlfriend."

Everything erupted.

"I KNEW IT! I JUST KNEW IT!" This came from May, who had clapped her hands together in excitement and was now grinning exuberantly. Pikachu leapt onto Ash shoulder with a joyful cry and nuzzled his trainer's cheek with a little muzzle in approval of the turn of events, which pleased Ash; he had hoped that Pikachu would approve. Poochyena began to bark excitedly, though the pup didn't really understand why everyone had become so happy all of a sudden. Max just stared in mystification.

"I. Can. Not. Believe. This." This came from a stunned Brock. "…After all this time… AND I MISSED IT!" Ash and Misty almost fell over backwards as Brock rushed them, grabbing Ash's left shoulder and Misty's right shoulder and mildly shaking the both of them. "HOW COULD YOU TWO DO SOMETHING LIKE THIS TO ME!"

"Wha…?" Misty managed to speak, blinking in embarrassment, as Togepi trilled intensely in her arms despite her lack of understanding the situation.

"How could you two get together without me there to be able to watch!" Brock whined loudly. "That's so unfair! And with no warning, either!"

Suddenly, Misty became irate. "Hey! What's that supposed to mean!"

"It means that I've been waiting for YEARS for this to happen!" Brock cried, throwing out his hands wide. "Kanto, Johto, and now Hoenn! All this time I've been waiting for you two to get it together and fess up, and then you both finally come to your senses while you're stuck in an underground cavern and I don't get to see that single moment of confession!"

"Well, it wasn't much to see," Misty muttered mostly to herself, despite the fact that this was false. Max just stared in mystification.

"What do you mean, years?" Ash asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

"I mean, YEARS! I knew this day was coming for ages, what with the way you two always argued and flirted with each other all over the place and-"

"Flirted?" Ash glanced at Misty. Catching his eye, Misty's face, which had died down to a light pink, suddenly grew a bit red again. Ash felt himself blush once more. There was obviously a lot that both of them had to talk about concerning all of the previous time they had spent together as 'just friends'. Turning back to Brock before his blush grew any redder, he asked, "Well… why would you think that me and Misty would… Why would all of our fights make you think that…"

"Oh, Ash," May suddenly butted in, crossing her arms and shaking her head like an exasperated mother. "It's very obvious. The more two people argue, the more likely it is that they really care about one another." Seeing that Ash was probably about to question this, she continued, "I mean, why would two people spend so many hours arguing about trivial things if they didn't care about what the other person thought? It's really just another way of spending quality time with that person. I mean, I argue with Max a lot because I love him because he's my brother. Isn't that right, Max?" There was no reply. May suddenly glanced around for her younger sibling, finally spotting him and noticing that he hadn't moved in a while. "Max?"

Max just stared in mystification.

"What…" May saw his caramel eyes shooting back and forth between Ash and Misty.

Suddenly, he spoke. "I… don't get it."

May sighed and resumed her exasperated-mother pose as Ash and Misty exchanged a bemused glance. "It's very simple, Max. Ash and Misty finally realized how much they really care about each other, and now they are boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Oh." Max seemed to nod his head a bit. Then, suddenly, his eyes grew wide. "WHAT!"

May laughed.

"All right, you two," Brock said, positively beaming though he was wagging a stern finger in Ash and Misty's faces. "It's explanation time! I want to hear a full report with as much detail as possible of all of the events that took place while the rest of us weren't here, starting with all of us leaving the campsite to play Brace Hide-And-Seek. And after that," Brock tilted his head and eyed them with mock suspicion, "the three of us are going to have a nice, long discussion on proper conduct between boyfriends and girlfriends, or I'll never be able to leave you two alone again-"

"Brock!" Misty yelled in outrage, her face growing scarlet. Ash had the sense to at least look contrite, despite not entirely understanding why he should be offended.

Max just stared in horror. "WHAT!"

Misty continued her tirade. "And what do you know about proper conduct between boyfriends and girlfriends, Mr. I-Declare-My-Undying-Love-For-Every-Pretty-Older-Girl-I-Meet?"

Brock's face fell.

May's eyebrows went up. "Oooo. Harsh."

Max just stared in horror. "WHAT!"

And then, Ash's stomach growled loudly. The rest of the group turned to him in question, and he chuckled nervously, his hand on his middle. "Well," he admitted apologetically, "I haven't eaten since that soup you made around the campfire, Brock, and we've been through a lot since then." Misty suddenly realized how hungry she was herself; sitting by that fire with her mind tore up about her suspicions of May seemed to have occurred lifetimes ago, and now, she mentally chided herself for have only eaten half of her soup.

"That's right! You two haven't eaten since last night!" Brock had forgotten. "Well, then, there's no more time to waste, standing around talking about everything. We need to get out of these caverns, then I'll get everyone – especially you two – something to eat, and then we'll find the quickest route to Fortree so I can get both of you to a hospital or Pokémon Center." He quickly motioned them toward the end of the icy slide that ran the cavern's perimeter. "You two can tell the rest of us about everything as we go!"

Ash and Misty, carrying Pikachu and Togepi respectively, gladly followed Brock as the eldest of the group made his way through the thick flurries toward the slide. Poochyena quickly took the lead, bounded about gleefully ahead of them and circling back to urge them on quicker. As Max just stared in horror and cried "WHAT!" while his eyes stared at Ash and Misty, his sister had to grab him around the wrist with her Kingler-like grip and pull him after the others.

As they walked, Misty leaned in towards Ash. "'Girlfriend'?" She questioned in a whisper, an eyebrow raised playfully. Ash remembered how he had explained their new relationship to the others with one sentence.

"Well, at the moment, it was a lot easier to explain than 'soulmate'," Ash whispered back. Misty understood and nodded, her aquatic eyes glinting in happiness and contentment. "They'll understand in time, won't they, Mist?"

"Mmhmm," Misty nodded, her mood becoming almost as bubbly as May's usually was. Unobtrusively, she slipped one of her hands into Ash's, and he didn't reject it. It seemed, in both of their subconscious minds, as if holding hands as they walked side by side would soon become their favorite sign of mutual affection; both felt quite comfortable with that form of physical contact, as it wasn't too much or too little. Misty could hear the loosely-suppressed gleeful giggles of the younger girl walking behind her, knowing they were aimed at herself and Ash, but Misty only smiled to herself. _Ah, May. It's not as if there isn't someone you would like to hold hands with yourself… And don't you think that I'm not going to do anything about that, either. I'm already starting to have a plan in mind…_

After reaching the slide, May and Max finally realized that they were still carrying Misty and Ash's backpacks, along with their Pokémon, and quickly restored the packs to their rightful owners. Ash saw a glimmer of disappointment cross Max's face, just for a split second, as the bespectacled boy handed Ash's Pokéball belt back to him, and Ash could see that Sableye was still on Max's mind. _Most likely, Sableye will be on Max's mind for a while. _Luckily, Max became distracted once more from his thoughts of the Darkness Pokémon as he resumed his staring in horror at both Ash and Misty, as if they had both caught some terrible disease.

Then, the group spent a minute or two figuring out a plan and finally decided that using Brock's Onix would be the best way to get them up to the level where the slide originated, especially seeing as Onix had been unable to participate in the battle with Haunter and was not tired. Releasing the large, lengthy Rock- type, Brock instructed Onix to allow one member of the group to hold on to the horn on his head at a time and raise them up like an elevator to the top. Onix performed with contented obedience, and soon, the group was giving one last look to the third cavern far below them. Then, recalling Onix and retrieving one of the three Escape Ropes that James had given him before he had jumped down the hole to the waiting caverns below, Brock released the rope and, shortly thereafter, the group was once again in the second cavern.

As they walked through the snow, Brock forced Ash and Misty into relating their journey from the campsite to their accidental finding of the cavern to their trip down to the third cavern. Occasionally, Brock or May would interject a comment on what the rest of the group had probably been doing at the same time as something else occurred, but otherwise, Ash and Misty's voices were the only ones sounding as they helped each other to remember exactly what had happened. Sometimes, in the background, they would hear a voice crying "WHAT!" in a horrified manner, but by now, the others dismissed it. As they passed the poem scratched high on the wall, Misty couldn't help but smile sadly and hold Ash's hand just a little bit tighter. Sableye had done so much for them; she wished that they would have been able to do more for him.

Strangely, the hole in the high ceiling that led to the first cavern came upon them a lot quicker than it had previously. As they made it into the first cavern and stopped for a moment at Ash and Misty's instructions to check for any signs of an unstable chasing Sneasel, May begged Ash and Misty to hurry up with their tale and get to the mushy parts, at which Max just stared in horror and once again cried "WHAT!"

Though they continued to relate their journey down to the last cavern, their first meeting with Haunter, and all that came after that before the group had been reunited once more, Ash and Misty used every vague reference and quick overview they could to avoid talking about the small, intimate moments they had shared. Ash stumbled over the describing of their sleeping positions the night before and Misty took a considerable amount of time finding a way around talking about Ash's possession of her handkerchief, while Brock gave them both a highly suspicious look each time either one stuttered. Both entirely skipped over their resting on the crystalfall and the following events, though May clearly pointed out the fact that their confessions had been missing from the story once they had finished. Ash and Misty remained tight-lipped on the matter, though May was internally determined to pry such exhilarating information from the older girl's lips sooner or later (hopefully, sooner than later, of course). Max just stared in horror.

Brock and May completed the story for their group so that the entire party was up-to-date, just as they reached the hole in the ceiling that would, finally, lead them back to the surface of the earth. And, as the group stared about in silence and the two soulmates dropped hands, Ash felt himself grow rather sad. Despite all of the treacherous events that had taken place down in these caverns, he had also formed so many good memories: his meeting the remarkable Sableye, his alone-time with Misty, and his exploring of the most beautiful grotto in the world. Like a hallway in a vast cathedral, this first cavern stretched out a long way before and behind him, the walls jagged and marble-patterned, the silvery gray-and-white of the stone, the dripping stalactites high above, the settled snow rolled up against the walls like waves in the tide. _I'll miss it…_ But then, feeling Pikachu's tiny claws sinking a bit into his shoulder, Ash smiled. He had been cold long enough, and his stomach felt as if it were about to come out of his body to strangle him. With a short chuckle that was almost a sigh, Ash took Misty's hand once more and turned to Brock. "Let's go."

"Let's go, you's two, and I's means it. Really."

Meowth shuttered, his anxiety winning over his frustration at the fact that his two partners-in-crime were currently not listening to his reasoning. He sighed heavy-heartedly, and took the slightest peek at the black hole a few inches from his paws. As if he hadn't already sat by this hole in the blazing hot sun, sweating near to death and waiting for Jesse and James to come back from their little traipse in the underground snow; now, he had been stationed to sit by the hole once more and watch for any signs of movement, commanded by James of all people! Seeing as it had not been Jesse that had done the talking, this order was quite a bizarre event in itself, never mind the fact that Team Rocket should have been halfway to Fortree City by now.

It had not taken too long for the silent and stunned trio to find the place where they had staked down their hot air balloon in the forest. Once arriving, Jesse and James had simply gone about their tasks of preparing for take-off without a word, even as Meowth didn't help and simply stood around to watch them. Meowth still could not entirely get it through his head that the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp were history, but if it had been a hoax used to get the rest of the twerps and their livid Pokémon off of their case to earn a chance to escape, Jesse and James wouldn't still be acting the way they were at the moment. And Meowth hadn't forgotten the looks on their faces, dull but afraid with exhaustion and terror, after they had climbed out of the hole in the ground themselves.

The whole "they're dead" thing was just beginning to sink in for the talking Pokémon when the hot air balloon was suddenly ready to fly, and the trio promptly got in the basket, again without a word. Rising high above the treetops to a comfortable level below the summer clouds, Meowth gripped the edge of the basket tensely with sharp claws, staring down into the forest and waiting for Jesse to make the adjustments to head them toward their next destination. Then, someone finally spoke. It was James, and when he did, it was in one of the most quietly determined voices Meowth had ever heard from James before. "Jesse… please. …We need to go back."

For a moment, the sapphire eyes and emerald eyes of the two humans in the hot air balloon were locked. Meowth watched his two motionless and silent partners anxiously. Jesse was the first one to break the stare, turning around to make the necessary directional changes to the balloon to set their course, and slowly, it dawned on Meowth that she was not setting their course for Fortree. She was turning the balloon in the direction of the middle of the forest of Route 119, back towards the hole in the ground.

No matter how much Meowth protested, neither of the other two yielded. He yelled at them that they needed to make a getaway before they got caught by some Officer Jenny in their Team Rocket uniforms, that they might end up with the same fate as the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp if indeed those two were no longer among the living, and so on. He even threatened to call the boss and report that the two of them were going out of their way to help their quarry of all things, though Meowth knew this was an idle threat. What didn't bode well for Jesse and James wouldn't bode well for Meowth either, what with their being a team and all.

It wasn't very long before the hot air balloon touched down in the meadow, a few yards from the foreboding hole in the ground. Jesse and James seemed to have both returned to silence, except for James' command to watch for anything coming out of the hole. When Meowth started to protest this, the grim look on James' face as he stared at Meowth was frightening enough to make the talking Pokémon shudder. Meowth had sat down quietly by the hole after that, watching the two humans stake the balloon to the ground once more.

However, Meowth was no longer feeling as tolerant and indulgent as he had been earlier. They had been here for what felt like hours, which it just might have been, for the sun was getting ready to go down. Meowth was now repeatedly begging Jesse and James to listen to reason as they both stood leaning against the basket of the hot air balloon, their eyes flicking back and forth from their surroundings to the hole every now and then. Both still wore identical austere expressions on their faces and had crossed their arms, making them look on the defensive. And both were still clearly ignoring him.

With a sigh, Meowth focused his attention on trying to persuade the human that was most likely to give up this stakeout quicker. "Jesse, come ons! Geesh, you's knows this is just a waste of ours time. We's needs to go. Now. Before something really bads happens!" Finally, Jesse's eyes seemed to glance at the whining Pokémon, and Meowth caught the brief look that crossed her face. Jesse was becoming impatient herself, making Meowth wonder why she hadn't blown up yet; Jesse was never one to wait for anything, much less wait around for hours to stare at a hole when they might be able to make it to a comfy bed in the next city before nightfall.

Jesse looked as if she were about to say something, but Meowth saw her eyes glance over at her partner just for a second. Then, she closed her mouth; Meowth could see why. James was shooting both of them, him and Jesse, a dirty look of the intensity that Meowth hadn't known that the boy possessed. Promptly, Jesse turned back to Meowth and informed him snottily, "No."

Once again a sigh escaped the frustrated Pokémon's mouth. Jesse sighed to herself. Meowth had a point, a very good and valid point. They really shouldn't be here anymore. _And yet, _Jesse thought, shooting a clandestine glance in her partner's direction, _James has a good point, too. _Her sapphire eyes went to the hole in the ground. _I mean… this is the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp we're talking about… and James is even convinced that those twerps were going to somehow end up with each other someday… How many times have the Twerps helped us, after all? Not as many as the times they've made things worse for us, for sure, but plenty of times anyway. And it's not like we haven't helped the Twerps before ourselves, when helping would benefit us, too, of course. So what's the big deal now? …We should have… James was right, down when we were in that last cavern. We really should have taken the Twerps' bodies with us, even though that horrid Haunter was right behind us… I feel so… guilty about it… and I rarely feel guilty about anything…_

_Oh, Ho-oh…_ James stared at the hole, trying to keep a look of sad distress from disrupting the stern expression on his face. _…Please let… the other Twerps be all right… If the Main Tw- oh, what the heck. If Ash and Misty are really… dead… I hope that their ghosts will be able to find peace. But please, let the others at least be all right. _James switched his weight slowly from one foot to the other. _I know that, if Brock and the others make it back anytime soon, they'll need our help for sure. They'll bring Ash and Misty's bodies with them, I know it, and then they won't be able to take them anywhere without transportation. It will be the least we can do after leaving their bodies down there ourselves, the very least…_

Meowth glanced around at both of his partners again. Neither were to be persuaded, it seemed. With a grumble in the back of his throat, Meowth settled in, wondering if James would threaten him with those emerald eyes again if he lay down in the dusty grass to keep watch. Then, Meowth's sensitive ears picked up a sound, a whirling sound that Meowth had heard already today. Immediately, he was up on his feet and backing away from the hole as the whirling sound grew closer and turned into a whoosh. Jesse and James quickly stood up straighter, all eyes on the hole. Suddenly, a grapple hook connected to a rope came flying out of the hole and lodged itself firmly in the ground. "The Twerps…" The words escaped Jesse's mouth without her notice.

James stepped closer to the hole, watching the rope pull taunt and sway slightly. Someone was coming up. He tried to steel himself in his mind for what he was about to see, the image of Ash and Misty's bodies lying pale and motionless on the ice flashing before his eyes. As several moments passed, the group remained quiet, watching the hole anxiously. James felt a slight touch on his shoulder, both holding him back from running to the hole and slightly comforting him at the same time. Meowth found that his heart was beating fast in his chest.

Suddenly, a hand appeared over the side of the hole to grasp at the earth.

A whitish-toned hand wearing a fingerless glove.

"…Huh…?" The noise of confusion came from both Jesse and James.

Then, up popped a black-haired head wearing a Pokémon League hat.

"GHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" The two human members of Team Rocket quickly retreated back to their basket. Meowth stepped backwards a pace, eyes wide as he watched the Main Twerp, Pikachu clinging to the top of the pack on his back, pull himself up and out of the hole. Jesse and James continue to scream and cling to each other in fear, but the Main Twerp ignored them, simply reaching back down into the hole and grabbing onto another pale hand. Soon, the Main Female Twerp emerged from the hole, Togepi's little head sticking out of the top of her red satchel, and within minutes, every member of Team Twerp was sitting on the ground around the hole, breathing heavily from exertion…

Every one of them was alive and well.

"YOU'RE NOT DEAD!" James' voice had shot up an octave.

The Main Twerp suddenly turned his head around to face Jesse and James, as if just realizing that they were there. "…Team Rocket?"

The Cooking Twerp looked up at this question and saw the stunned trio and their staked-down hot air balloon. "What are you three still doing here?"

"I's would likes to know that, too!" Meowth suddenly exploded, and his eyes shot daggers at his two partners-in-crime, who were still staring at the group in disbelief. "You's twos said those two Twerps were toast!"

"B- but, they were!" Jesse managed to get out in a stammer, unconsciously releasing her hold on James. She saw the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp exchange a puzzled glance, eyebrows raised. _They're not dead… I don't believe it. But James and I, we saw… we saw…_ They were moving and breathing though, despite the fact that both of their skin was still creamy in color and the Main Female Twerp had a nasty looking cut across her forehead.

"YOU'RE NOT DEAD!" Once again, James' high-pitched question was ignored, even as he took several steps closer to them to get a better look.

The Mini Twerp was suddenly yelling at Meowth indignantly. "No, Ash and Misty are not TOAST! They're fine, no thanks to you three!"

"Yeah!" the Second Female Twerp managed to add.

"Hey!" Suddenly, James had grown somewhat indignant himself, despite the fact that he was still looking at the formerly deceased Twerps warily. "We tried to help, all right! We told you about their bodies down there in that last cavern, didn't we? You would never have found them if we hadn't have told you!"

As the Main Twerp turned to the others to explain that this was true and that Team Rocket had also supplied them with Escape Ropes among other things so that they would be able to get out, Jesse watched in amazement. Suddenly, she felt a heavy weight on her left shoulder and looked around to stare in irritation at the Meowth that had landed there. "Come ons, Jesse," the Cat Pokémon whispered slyly in her ear, "Those twos twerps are alive and kickin', so you's gots nothin' to worry about. This is the perfect chance to…" Jesse felt her forehead wrinkle in uncertainty as Meowth laid out his plan.

With James still unintentionally occupying the Twerps with their back-and-forth banter, Jesse gave Meowth a final irritated glance, saw his cunning expression, and sighed. "If you're sure…" she muttered, with a tone in her voice that seemed to suggest that she was already having second thoughts.

"As sure's as Gyarados lays Magikarp eggs!" Meowth assured her, and the two slipped around behind the basket of the balloon, despite Jesse's muttering that he needed to find a less disturbing expression of assurance.

Meanwhile, James seemed to be winning the argument of whether or not Team Rocket had been of any help at all to the rescue mission. When the Mini Twerp, the Second Female Twerp, and the Cooking Twerp had finally pointed out so many mistakes in Jesse and James' actions that there were not enough excuses to cover it all, James had won the match by pointing out that no one was perfect, they had tried the best they could, they truly had helped some, and the point was that everyone had come out alive anyway so it really didn't matter in the end who had done what. Seeing the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp were nodding in agreement, Pikachu, who was sitting on the grass next to his master, nodded as well until he suddenly realized that there was an iron clamp clutching him solidly around the middle. "Pika? …PIKA!"

Instantly, all of the twerps (which, at the moment, included James) turned toward the grounded basket of the Meowth-head hot air balloon, out of which had come the mechanical rod connected to the clamp that was now around Pikachu. Jesse and Meowth were in the basket. Jesse was staring back at them dubiously. Meowth was grinning gleefully.

When the entire meadow remained quiet, Meowth poked Jesse with his foot under cover of the edge of the basket and hissed under his breath, "Come ons, Jess, and hurrys up all ready…"

With a sigh of martyrdom, Jesse began dully, "Prepare for trouble…?"

"And make it double!" Meowth called out, his voice peppy as if performing a cheerleader's routine.

The twerps (and James) stared at them in disbelief. Eventually, the Mini Twerp's stunned voice broke the silence. "You're kidding me…"

At another poke from Meowth, Jesse continued listlessly, "To protect the world from… devastation…"

"To unites all peoples within our's nation!"

Suddenly, James seemed to break out of his stupor. "HEY! THAT'S MY LINE!"

"Wells then, gets up here and say's it, Jimmy Boy," Meowth cried back.

The twerps were now all on their feet. "Just what do you think you're doing?" The Cooking Twerp was yelling at Meowth and Jesse angrily, his hands clenched into fists. Jesse just sighed and shrugged.

"We're sayings the motto and stealin' Pikachu, of course!" Meowth shouted back.

"Why on earth would you do that right now!" The Main Female Twerp shot back.

"Because," Meowth protested slowly, as if explaining this to preschoolers, "We, Team Rocket, have appeared throughout this entire book, and guess whats? The last time we's attempted to steals Pikachu was alls the way back in Chapter Six, we's haven't gotten close to capturin' Pikachu since Chapter One, and nots once, NOTS ONCE, thoughout this entire story have we's been able to completes the entire motto!"

All was silent as everyone, including his own teammates, stared at him in confusion. Finally, Jesse turned to Meowth and cried "What?"

Meowth sighed. "Nevers mind."

"LET GO OF PIKACHU, TEAM ROCKET!" The Main Twerp was shouting, not perturbed by the odd speech. He had grabbed a hold of the clamp around his Pokémon's waist and was tugging on it with all of his might, trying to getting it to open up. The Main Female Twerp was instantly beside him, tugging on the clamp as well.

The other twerps were yelling at Team Rocket in fury and Poochyena was barking loudly, but the Second Female Twerp's violent screaming was overtaking the others' noises. "HOW ON EARTH COULD YOU DO SOMETHING LIKE THIS!"

"BECAUSE," Meowth yelled back over the din, his voice starting to feel strained, "WE'S GOTTA CLAMP THAT WONT'S CONDUCT ELECTRICITY AND WE'S NOT AFRAID TO USE IT!"

Suddenly, James, who was still standing halfway between the twerps and the balloon, turned to Meowth and yelled something, but his words were lost.

"WHAT?" Meowth yelled back. The three twerps would not stop their furious shouting, nor would the other two stop their pulling on the clamp.

"I SAID," James' voice was finally audible over the uproar, "THAT THE CLAMP YOU USED JUST NOW WAS THE ONE WITHOUT THE ANTI-ELECTRICITY COATING! THE ONE ON THE OTHER SIDE… of the balloon… is the one with… the…" He trailed off after recognizing that none of the twerps were shouting at all anymore, and suddenly realizing what he had just said. Slowly, James turned to look back at the twerps, and gulped. The group was silent and still, but their eyes were now narrowed, glaring holes through Team Rocket.

Pikachu's cheeks sparked once. "Chu."

"PIKACHU!" The Main Twerp shouted, both he and the Main Female Twerp releasing their hold on the metal clamp. "GIVE 'EM A THUNDERBOLT, AND BLOW 'EM ALL THE WAY TO JOHTO!"

"H- hey, nows, waits a minute!" Meowth stuttered fearfully, front paws up in the air innocently. "Don'cha thinks that's a little extreme? I's means, that's alls the ways across an ocean and another continent!"

"READY… AND…" Pikachu's cheeks began to spark quicker.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Meowth cried, but Pikachu didn't look as if he was ready to stop.

At the last second, James threw his hands up in despair. "PARLEY!"

Meowth nodded quickly. "THAT'S THE ONE! PARLEY!"

Jesse quickly thew her hands up, too, her eyes wide. "YES… SAME AS THEM."

The twerps all looked at Team Rocket skeptically for a long, tense moment. Then, with an exasperated sigh, the Main Twerp motioned to Pikachu and the sparks from the Pokémon's red cheeks died down. Team Rocket gave a collective sigh of relief, though they weren't out of the water yet.

"Let Pikachu go… now," the Main Twerp commanded swiftly, and he had to hurry to catch Pikachu before the Pokémon hit the ground, for the clamp was immediately released.

"Okay, okay… Nows what you's wants us to dos?" Meowth called, paws returning to the air after pressing the button to retract the clamp on its mechanical rod back into the basket.

The group of twerps glanced around at each other, considering what they should command next.

"Give it to them anyway, Pikachu!" The Mini Twerp suggested.

"Little sadist," Jesse grumbled.

"Wait!" The eldest of the twerps called out, and the others turned to look at him. He seemed to be thinking hard. Finally, he continued, staring critically at the nervous Team Rocket. "You three… Take us to Fortree City in your hot air balloon." Sensing that even the members of his own group were looking at him in puzzlement, he continued, "If Team Rocket takes all of us to Fortree City, we'll get there a lot faster than if we walked, and I want to get Ash and Misty to a hospital or Pokémon Center for a check-up after all they went through. It's almost sunset, so we wouldn't get very far today anyway before we'd have to set up camp. Also, if we're in the hot air balloon, I can be fixing everyone something to eat and we'll still be making some progress towards the next city." As the rest of his group nodded at his sensibility, he eyed Team Rocket once more. "After all, I'm sure you three were headed toward Fortree City anyway."

James was about to ask if the Cooking Twerp would make he and his teammates something to eat, too, but wisely said instead, "Well, I don't know if the balloon will be able to hold that much more weight, with five extra people and three more Pokémon, not to mention your packs. We might never get off the ground."

"Drop some of the ballasts," the Mini Twerp said in a tone that suggested he was mentally rolling his eyes.

"Well, yes, that would work, wouldn't it-"

"You's not serious, are you's, Jimmy Boy?" Meowth stared at James, appalled that he would even give something like that any consideration at all.

James quickly whipped around to face his teammates in the balloon, and hissed in a whisper, "Do you really want to be blown all the way to Johto? Because you know that Pikachu could probably do it!" Jesse and Meowth both shook their heads. "I didn't think so." James turned to Meowth. "If we take them to Fortree City, they'll have so much that they have to get done there that they'll forget all about us. We'll be able to sneak off and regroup to have another shot at snatching Pikachu when we're more prepared!" To Jesse, he spoke in a lower whisper. "Also, if we take them right now, we'll have a better chance at finding out how A-, I mean, the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp are still alive, even though we saw their bodies and know their ghosts were the ones that dragged us along. And I know you want to know as bad as I do." Jesse looked away, obviously irritated that this was true.

"But waits a minute," Meowth suddenly spoke up, not keeping his voice down, "what if they decided to… uh…"

The flashes of electric lights behind James caught their attention, and they all looked wide-eyed at the twerps.

All five of the twerps were staring at them with impatient expressions, crossed arms, and eyebrows raised. Pikachu, from his perch on the Main Twerp's shoulder, was staring at them intently, as if daring them to refuse the Cooking Twerp's highly generous offer. The Pokémon's red cheeks continued to spark.

It only took a second for Team Rocket to glance at one another, then step aside to allow room for the twerps to climb into the basket.

"WELCOME ABOARD!"

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

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Thank you once again for reading, and I hope that all of you bless me with your patience so that I may complete this novels last chapter to the best of my writing abilities, as it's sure to be grand! Please review! 

NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 11's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter.


	13. From Now Until The End Of Time

Well, everyone… it's been quite a journey, but this novel has finally come to an end. I thought I would never see the end of it, especially after I had written the last three lines of the whole thing way over a year ago. However, here it is: the last chapter, the finale… I hope that you enjoy it and that it lives up to your expectations.

Chapter 12s title of "…never know what's round the bend…" comes from the song _All We Wanna Do_ from both the Totally Pokémon and Pokémon 3: The Ultimate Soundtrack CDs. Congratulations to these reviewers for guessing correctly: Xtreme Gamer, Soft Flame Matthias, neogirl7900, J.C. the Wabbit, kIcK aSs BaStArD, and sumguy. Chapter 13's title is from the song _Together Forever_ from the Pokémon: 2 B A Master CD.

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**CHAPTER 13: …From Now Until The End Of Time… **

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"WHAT!" Meowth just stared in horror.

"My sentiments exactly," Max muttered.

"But… but…" The Scratch Cat Pokémon's head whipped back and forth from the sheepish Ash to the blushing Misty, his mouth hung open in shock. "Hows can this be!"

"Because, Meowth," Jesse replied, her voice full of regal arrogance as she leaned back against the back side of the basket nonchalantly with her nose in the air. "We tried to warn you, but you wouldn't listen to us, would you?"

Meowth took his stunned gaze off of the pair of twerps long enough to shoot the woman beside him an irritated glare, then allowed his claws to unsheathe in mounting fury as he caught sight of her partner dancing around in small circles, squealing, "I knewwwwww it! I knewwwwww it!" in triumph, in the cramped space of the hot air balloon basket. "CUT IT OUT, JIMMY!"

"But I told you, didn't I!" James cried, suddenly slinging his arms companionably around Ash and Misty's shoulders and leaning in to inform Meowth, not noticing the two twerps' uneasy stares. "I told you! I told you!"

"This's absolutely absurd!" Meowth yowled, crossing his arms in frustration. He heard a snort of agreement and, out of the corner of his eye, saw Max turn his back to the conversation in favor of the darkening sky in his front-right corner of the basket. Poochyena was holding onto the edge of the basket with his two front paws, barking at Taillow and Swablu as they flew past under the hot air balloon, headed for their nests in the treetops. Max put his arms around the pup, leaned against the side, and stared out at the first twinkle of stars in the distance. At least there was one person that shared in his surprise, Meowth thought.

"It's not absurd!" May spoke up, finally turning around from where she was standing at the front end of the basket to dreamily watch the night sky on her right fade into the setting sun on her left. "It makes perfect sense!"

Brock chuckled, and stirred the pot of stew in front of him as he sat cross-legged on the floor in the back-right corner. With a few more threats of electrocution by Pikachu, the worn-out group had persuaded Team Rocket to allow them to borrow one of their portable cooking stoves, and Brock had immediately gotten to work on fixing them all something to eat.

While Jesse, James, and Meowth had been hurriedly preparing to bring aboard five more human passengers and preparing to launch the balloon, Brock had forced the last of the leftover riceballs into Ash and Misty's hands and demanded them to eat, as it would still be some time before a real meal could be prepared. The two needed no second bidding after going for almost twenty-four hours without any food at all, and the riceballs disappeared quickly. However, no one else had eaten since lunch, so as soon as the balloon was up in the air and he had secured the stove, Brock had gotten to work.

After the balloon had been set on its course toward Fortree City in the north, Team Rocket had tried to persuade Ash and Misty to explain how on earth they had ended up escaping the Haunter, escaping the caverns, and escaping death. Of course, the trio had not come right out and asked; they had used every technique in the book to get the previously-deceased pair to tell the story without sounding like they were interested, as being interested just wouldn't be right with their criminal code.

Once they realized what Team Rocket was after, Ash and Misty, along with May and Max, had certainly obliged in telling the tale while Brock listened contentedly and cooked. Describing the awesome battle and all that followed would help them to remember all of the events forever anyway. Jesse, James, and Meowth had all sat in silence, enraptured by the tale until somehow the conversation had turned to Ash and Misty's new status as 'boyfriend and girlfriend.' The cries of delight and confusion from the trio had permanently put a stop to the account.

Pikachu and Togepi were nestled on top of the groups' backpacks, which were stacked in a pile against the right side, and were watching the stew bubbling in its pot. As Brock stirred and chuckled at the conversation in the center of the basket, Togepi trilled and Pikachu twitched his lightening bolt shaped tail in contented amusement.

"None of you's is makin' any sense," Meowth grumbled.

"Be that as it may," Jesse said, the arrogance in her voice as strong as ever, and smirked at the Cat standing next to her, "you do know what this means, don't you?" After a moment of confusion, Meowth's eyes suddenly grew wide in realization.

James, who had released Ash and Misty to lean against the basket on Meowth's other side, grinned insatiably and crowed, "You owe us big time, Meowth!"

Suddenly, the nervous Pokémon's paws were up in the air and he was shaking his head, stuttering, "Oh, come on's now, you's guys…"

"Oh, no you don't!" Jesse was instantly leering angrily at the Scratch Cat, who quickly cowered in fear behind his paws. "You're not getting out of this one, Meowth!"

"That's right!" James put in, crossing his arms firmly. "We all made a bet, and you're sticking to it! Just because you lost doesn't mean that-"

"Now, waits a minute!" Meowth was suddenly up in arms as well. "How does I's know you's two ain't rigged this!"

"'Rig it?' How on earth could we do something like that?" James cried indignantly.

"Hey, you two," Jesse suddenly whipped around to face the bewildered Ash and Misty. "How long have you all known about your little love-crush thing?"

Misty's light blush grew bright red. Ash finally managed to get out, "Just today," before his voice caught in his throat in embarrassment.

"See?" Jesse leered at Meowth once more. "How could we fix that if they only got together today?"

"You's twos were down in that cavern-"

"They were dead, for Ho-oh's sake!" James cried in exasperation. "You can't talk to ghosts you can't see and tell them to pretend they're in love and expect them to do that for no reason!"

"Now just a second, you three," Brock suddenly put in, his eyebrows raised in curiosity. "Let me see if I've got this right. You three had a bet going about Ash and Misty becoming a couple?" May was watching the entire thing with a big grin on her face. Ash's mouth was slightly open, waiting to see if someone would say something that would let him understand what was going on. Misty's eyes were wide above her reddened cheeks. Max was pointedly ignoring them all.

"Yes, we did," James proclaimed in a dignified manner, "And now Meowth thinks he can back out of it because he was wrong, and I knew they'd get together all along!" May burst out laughing. Misty's face was now hidden behind her hands. Ash's mouth had promptly shut.

Brock went back to stirring the stew with a grin. "I knew I should have accepted that bet with Tracey…" he chuckled quietly. "I wish I had known that other people had bet on Ash and Misty, too." Only Pikachu had heard him, and the electric Pokémon purred jovially and exchanged a knowing glance with the breeder.

"How would you… know…" Ash began, talking almost to himself, but quickly cut his question short. He caught Misty glancing at him in disconcertment through her fingers, before she closed the spaces and continued to keep her red face covered.

Meanwhile, Jesse was shouting, "Fork it over, furball!" with her hand held out in Meowth's horrified face. "It's time to pay up! Your entire paycheck, if you please…"

Meowth's mouth suddenly closed, and he quickly looked away from Jesse's eyes. "Oh…" he said slowly, and began to nod, keeping his gaze on the floor of the basket. "Alright. Justs a second. One paycheck, comin's right up! You's twos got's me fair and squares, alright." Jesse stared at Meowth suspiciously, and James stared questioningly, as the Scratch Cat wandered away from them to dig out his paycheck.

_Shoo! _Meowth breathed out an internal sigh of relief to himself. _Thanks goodness that Jesse and James forgot that when Jesse got's pulled into the bet, the stakes doubled for me to's accommodate Jesse's money! …Heh, can't let them remember that!_

As Meowth divided up the bills in equal halves for his two partners, an air of martyrdom about him, May turned back to stare out at the sky with the wide grin still plastered on her face. She crossed her arms and leaned them on the edge of the basket, placing her chin on top to steady her gaze. All she could see on the ground was the forest of Route 119 below them, and the tiny path they had been traveling on toward Fortree City the day before. May suddenly realized just how much had changed in the last day for her little band of friends.

_I think, though, it's mostly for the best, _she thought, her grin slowly fading into a soft smile. _We faced a lot of tough challenges: finding Ash and Misty, figuring out what had happened to them, and defeating that Haunter. But we all made it, and we're all alive. Even better, I think we learned some things, too. _

She could see her younger brother standing in his corner out of the corner of her eye, the light breeze from the forward motion of the balloon tousling his short hair. She knew that he wasn't too angry with Ash and Misty for suddenly changing the way the group would be from now on, even though it was likely that the pair would spend more time with each other rather than with herself, Brock, or Max individually. Neither would probably tutor Max on all things Pokémon the way they had before, at least not until all of the changes had settled in to become the new norm.

May felt her smile sadden. Knowing her brother, he was probably just startled and bewildered, and maybe even a bit jealous. After all, Ash and Misty had connected on a deeper level, while Max had lost a chance of making a new friend and partner out of Sableye. _But I think he's learned a lot about himself. He's definitely not the crybaby I used to know, or he'd still be whining over Sableye. And he was awesome in that battle against Haunter! He showed a lot of skill and confidence in his abilities; I wish mom and dad had been able to see him. I know he'll make a great trainer someday… but I probably shouldn't tell him or he'll just get a big head! _May giggled to herself.

_I think Brock probably learned some stuff, too. _She glanced around for a moment to watch the breeder stirring the suddenly delicious-smelling stew and calmly ignoring the almost-drooling James that was practically leaning over his shoulder now. _After worrying so much last night about Ash and Misty, surely he's realized that he's not solely responsible for all of us, just because he's the oldest. We're all responsible for our actions, and we can take care of ourselves if we need to, just like Ash and Misty did… even if they did almost die._

_And, of course… _May felt herself grinning once more as she glanced at Ash and Misty, who were watching Brock defending the pot of stew from all three Team Rocket members with only his ladle. Both were smiling now, as all of the fuss was turned away from them, though Misty's face was still dreadfully pink. _Ash and Misty definitely learned the most out of all of us. I mean, learning about how much you really care about someone and then finding out that they care about you the same way, too? That's a bunch of stuff to take in. It'll probably take a while for them to get used to being a couple, because now, they have to learn all new things about each other and themselves. _May suddenly caught Misty's eye as the older girl glanced away from the defending of the stew. May winked mischievously, and a self-conscious grin appeared on Misty's face. _I already caught them holding hands earlier, so I guess they're learning that kind of stuff already._

May turned back around to the front of the basket and resumed her previous position. _I know I learned some things, too… _A quiet sigh escaped her lips, and if her younger sibling had glanced at her at that moment, he would have accused her of drifting off again, what with that vague absentminded smile on her face and her unfocused eyes.

_After seeing Ash and Misty get together… I know for sure now what I have to do… I really do love Brendan a lot, and I miss him so much… We were such good friends, after all, and for such a long time… I have to tell him. I have to find a way to get in touch with Brendan, and I have to tell him how I feel about him, before it's too late. I mean, you never know what could happen…_

…_If something did happen to him, and I was never able to see him again, or look into his beautiful silver eyes… I would feel horrible the rest of my life if I had never told him that he's more than just a friend to me… And I could be wasting all of our time right now just worrying that he won't care about me back, when there's a chance we could be spending our time being together… I can't keep waiting forever to tell him because none of us have forever to wait; Ash and Misty almost found that out the hard way, I think… And it's worth the risk of our friendship, to find out if he loves me, too… I'll never be truly happy, I don't think, until he knows how I feel about him, no matter what else follows…_

May stared out at the sky, dark on her right and light on her left. Her smile gradually changed from absentminded to resolute. _I don't know how I'll start my search just yet, but I will find you, Brendan Birch. I will, and when I do, I'll tell you how much I love you… I will…_

Once May had turned away after winking at her, Misty found that her feet were carrying her to the left side of the balloon, away from calamitous scene of the trio of thieves begging Brock to be fed. She leaned against the side, drowning out the noise of voices and listening to the hooting calls of awakening Noctowl in the forest below. Her aquatic eyes were enchanted by the sunset in front of her, and she gazed upon it in deep appreciation. The sun was a blast of brilliant gold, red, and orange, and the sky around it was a cloudy blur of pool blue, pink, and violet before it faded into the dark cobalt of the night, sprinkled with white pinpricks of stars. Misty couldn't help herself; the sky reminded her of the crystalfall.

Probably, she figured, anything she saw from now on that was a rainbow of colors would remind her of that natural marvel, hidden deep beneath the surface of the earth in caverns filled with snow and ice.

And the crystalfall would always make her think of the boy that had confessed his love for her there.

Ash was suddenly at her side, as if he had known she was thinking of him and was wishing that he was next to her. He leaned against the side as well, copying her crossed arms and resting them on the edge of the basket the way she had. His eyes copied her eyes as well as his gaze fixed itself on the dazzling sun sinking below the horizon. Noticing that Misty's gaze had turned to himself, Ash tilted his head to look at her and smiled mindlessly.

Misty knew the skin beneath her eyes had to have grown pink once more as she immediately found her gaze back on the sunset. Team Rocket's enthusiasm (well, Jesse and James', at least) over Ash and Misty's new relationship had somehow made her shy of her soul mate, even though she knew there was no reason to be. He was still Ash Ketchum, after all, and always would be. And yet, seeing Team Rocket's reaction, her mind couldn't stop thinking about how others would respond when they learned the news. What would her sisters back in Cerulean say? Or Ash's mom? Tracey? Gary? Professor Oak? Anyone else they knew? Would people support them the way Brock and May were, or would people cry "WHAT!" like Max and Meowth?

Her voice quivering slightly due to her thoughts and general nerves, she spoke quietly of the setting sun and sky. "It's beautiful, isn't it?"

"Yeah…" Misty felt herself smile a bit as Ash's voice trailed off in wonderment. Then, she realized that his eyes were still on her.

_How cliché!_ Her stomach suddenly incredibly warm in embarrassment, Misty felt her left hand quickly give him a playful shove to the shoulder. As Ash stumbled to the side a pace with a short quiet laugh, Misty forced herself to look him in the eyes once more. Those russet eyes of his were sparkling with contentment and delight, but she could see he was still a bit nervous, too. He was obviously trying his hardest to be the sweet-and-caring kind of boyfriend. Misty felt honored, not believing she totally deserved it. She did fuss at him a lot, after all. And hit him. But she wouldn't do that anymore; she had promised herself that down in the caverns, and it was a promise she meant to keep.

With a pleased sigh, she returned to her position to watch the sunset once more, and Ash did the same. Once their group had finalized the transportation arrangements to Fortree and they had quickly consumed the riceballs Brock had given them, Misty had been able to finally sit down and relax long enough to realize just how hot she was feeling. The summer day was cooling as the sun had begun to sink, but to Misty, it felt as if she was trapped in an oven. The heat in the air was scorching, and after consulting Brock (who felt fine) and Ash (who felt as hot as she did), she realized that the snowy caverns must have caused her to feel this way. She and Ash had been trapped in an environment of snow and ice overnight, and as a result, had actually grown used to the cold, especially after their bodies had been left unattended to and almost froze.

After stowing her aquatic-hued crystal in her backpack for safekeeping, she had blushingly returned Ash's vest to him, relieving herself of quite a bit of warmth. She had let her hair remain out of its normal ponytail, however, after seeing a brief expression of disappointed cross Ash's face as she made movements to put it back up. She had then remembered Ash gazing at her in a stupor when she had first taken her hair down, and that memory had decided it for her. And now, with the evening breeze gently blowing through her loose hair as the hot air balloon floated through the sky, she had cooled down to just the right temperature to feel comfortable.

The heat of the summer day had been useful, though. Glancing at her crossed arms, she could see that her skin had gained back a bit of its peachy hue after it had been bleached by the cold and her soul's absence. Ash's skin color was returning to normal as well. Misty had given a great sigh of relief once she had noticed this. She had almost thought that she and Ash would remain as white as sheets forever. The color was coming back to them so slowly, though, that it made Misty wonder if their bodies would have remained pale forever had they been trapped underground in the cold for any longer length of time. She was infinitely glad that they would never have to find out.

Noticing that the noise from the opposite side of the balloon had quieted somewhat, Misty glanced around behind her. Brock had apparently regained his former control over Team Rocket's actions, as the three were sitting still on the floor of the basket. However, all of them were staring hard at the boiling pot of stew and trembling with anticipation, and the look on Brock's face was one of paranoid nervousness, as if he was afraid that the trio would pounce at any moment. His fear was probably rational, Misty thought, stifling a laugh. Of course, Pikachu and Togepi were watching the stew being stirred intently as well. Max and Poochyena had joined them, with Max seated on one of the backpacks and his pup in his lap. After a moment, when it seemed as if James was going to reach his hand out to touch the pot, Brock whipped the ladle out and swung it waggishly at Team Rocket, making the trio flinch and Max laugh dryly. A grin came to Misty's face.

She started to turn her head back to watch the sunset again, when her eyes caught sight of May at the front of the basket, staring off into the distance ahead of them. An expression that had caused Misty much anxiety the day before was on May's face once more; it was that vague, dreamy look that meant that she was thinking about someone important. Misty felt content, knowing for sure that her Ash was not the focus of May's daydreams.

_Ah, May… I know I definitely want to meet your Brendan Birch, just to see what you see in him… From what you told me when we were on our way to the last cavern, he sounds quite intelligent and clever, and if he loves Pokémon as much as you say he does, he's bound to be a good person… _

It was then that Misty noticed that, beneath May's distant eyes, her mouth was slightly turned down in sorrow. _…I know how much you must miss him, May… I really do know… However… _Misty smiled softly, remembering the plan she had started to form in her head as the group was leaving the caverns for the last time. _After we get to Fortree, I'm taking the first chance I can to find a PokéMart, and hopefully, they'll have just what I'm looking for. I can't wait to see your face when I give you a phonebook as a friendship present! I know that you'll understand why; Brendan's number is bound to be in it, so you'll be able to call him… if you can get up the nerve to, of course! _

Misty turned back around to face the beautiful sunset, still smiling about her plan. After a moment, she realized that Ash was looking at her curiously with an eyebrow raised in question. His eyes were compassionate and caring in a way she had known before, though the concern had intensified to a level she could never remember having seen. _He must be wondering why I'm not shooting death glares at May anymore… and I bet he's still wondering about what I was so upset about yesterday, too…_

In fact, he was. _Come on, Misty. You know that you can tell me anything… especially now… especially now that you know, and I know, how… how much I love you… Please, you can tell me… I want to know… I care…_

_There's too much we need to talk about, _Misty thought, _and I don't necessarily want Team Rocket, or even the others in our group, to hear what we say, or else we'll never be able to tell everything that needs telling_. She shook her head, but upon seeing the deeply hurt look that came across Ash's face, she quickly leaned in and added in a whisper, "Not right now… later…" and tilted her head the slightest bit in the others' direction. Ash instantly nodded, the hurt disappearing from his face as if it had never existed, and he smiled perceptively.

Misty smiled as well, glad that he understood. The fading rays of the sun were glinting off of his russet eyes, making them sparkle the way the russet crystal had when she had discovered it in the crystalfall deep within the snowy caverns. It was such a comforting color that Misty felt as if she could drifting away and get lost in his gaze, as if she could stare into his eyes forever…

And suddenly, she realized that she really had been staring into his eyes for quite a long time, and he was staring into her eyes, too, as if he was enchanted by her eyes' aquatic hue. At the same time, a warm sensation hit her in her stomach, a burning feeling that she had felt before, as if from an out-of-control Fire- type attack, but she never once thought it to be hunger for food, because she knew that Ash was the one that had caused her to feel this way. And she realized with a start that her whole body was tingling with a different kind of sensation upon noticing that her left shoulder was brushing his right as they leaned on the side of the basket facing the sunset, staring so deep into each other's eyes that it felt as if she could pitch forward at any moment and drown herself in those twin pools of beautiful brown. And her heart almost stopped as she realized that she truly had pitched towards him a bit, so that her nose was inches away from his, and they were still staring into each other's eyes. The tingling sensation she recognized as the feeling that had come over her as her spirit and Ash's had embraced on the crystalfall, and remembering what had occurred after that, Misty felt her heart now start to race, and slowly, her eyes began to close as she let her body lean in towards him a little more, and she didn't stop until she felt warmth touching her lips…

Vaguely, in the background, Misty heard the sound of a ladle abruptly hit the floor of the hot air balloon basket, making her realize just how silent the area around her had grown, save for a hoarse gasp of "…what!…" that sounded as if it had come from the youngest member of the group. But she pushed all of that aside in her mind, and let herself fully enjoy and embrace the euphoric feeling that had overtaken her.

When Ash slowly pulled away from Misty, his eyes falling back onto the sunset, it took him a moment to realize that his mind had gone entirely blank as soon as he felt himself leaning towards her, pulled in by her eyes. Once he realized this, he became surprised that his first thought afterwards had been that he had another reason to be glad that they weren't ghosts anymore. The first time, on the crystalfall, their kiss had been light and ethereal, but this time… it had been a lot less supposititious… and certainly a lot more… satisfying… and better in general…

May reluctantly broke out of her reverie once she became aware of how quiet everyone had gotten, and she glanced around inquiringly until her eyes rested on her younger brother. _Strange, _she thought, wondering why Max had one hand covering Poochyena's eyes and his other hand covering his own. She could just hear him muttering, to himself or his Pokémon she wasn't sure, "don't look, don't look, don't look," which almost made her laugh, seeing as how she could just see one of his caramel eyes peeking out through his fingers toward the left side of the basket. Then, she blinked. …_What did I miss?_

As unnerved as she was by the stunned silence of the rest of her group, Misty had felt emboldened enough by her second kiss with her soul mate to gradually lean her head over to rest it gently on Ash's shoulder. He shifted just a bit to allow her to get more comfortable, making her smile warmly to herself, even through the blush that graced her cheeks. She didn't dare to look around to see what expression was on Brock's face, or on any of the others' faces… she didn't want to spoil the moment, for the moment felt so exhilarating and calming at the same time.

The sun was sinking even lower now, and Misty watched contentedly as the dark blue of the night began to overtake the brilliant colors surrounding the sunset. _Yes… it's just like the crystalfall… all of those colors… all of those millions of colors… millions… _And Misty suddenly laughed to herself, remembering a pessimistic thought she had had a moment before her soul and Ash's had stopped to rest on the crystalfall. _I had thought that there was no way that the others would be able to find us and save us from Haunter's grasp before the hour was up… _She could clearly remember thinking, as she gazed upon the crystalfall, _"…after all, what are the chances?_ …_One in a million?"_

Misty felt a smile grace her lips. _Even with a one in a million shot, we were still able to persevere and escape the caverns with our lives intact… just like it was a one in a million shot that I would find a crystal that is exactly the same color as Ash's eyes and he would find the crystal that matched mine… just like it was a one in a million shot that both Ash and I would love each other, and not someone else or no one at all… _She sighed, at peace with the world.

_It just goes to show… that anything's possible…_

Ash' shoulder was tingling with warmth where Misty was laying her head. It was a wonderful feeling, just like the feeling he got from holding hands with her. Despite the fact that he had committed himself to being her soul mate and staying with her forever, her presence made him feel freer and more alive than he could ever remember feeling before. Ash smiled at the sunset. Soon, it would be a new day, and with that new day would come the start of a new life with Misty. It would be a new adventure, the likes of which he had never known or dreamed about, but he was more than willing to give it a try.

In exceptionally high spirits, Ash realized that he hadn't been this happy for a long time. Perhaps he had never been this happy, ever. Everything was now absolutely beyond perfection in his life.

Well, except for the fact that he wasn't the greatest Pokémon Master. Yet.

But Misty would be there to help him with that.

**THE END**

* * *

Softly, so as to refrain from creating any unnecessary noise in the heavy silence, he stepped out onto the open ice, away from the tunnel and into the dim light of the last cavern. The claws on his back paws dug into the frozen liquid harder than was necessary to keep himself from toppling over, but he was uneasy and full of anxiety, so he didn't notice. His front paws he held close to his sides, tensed and ready in preparation of the brutal and merciless ambush he was expecting and felt had a high chance of occurring.

No attack came.

The cavern was not entirely still, however. Imperceptible shadows wisped back and forth, crossing, colliding, amid and among the stalactites in the back of the cavern and close to the ceiling. Sableye's tensed body began to relax. This was how it should be, what life down here was supposed to be like. The Shuppet were supposed to be there, their skirts wavering in the ethereal breeze they created themselves. Those small, secretive, yet not devious smiles that played upon all of their faces relieved some of the troubles that had filled his mind, and Sableye wondered if they knew what good news that he wanted to hear, but didn't feel like revealing such information for a while, if only to create a fair amount of suspense for him. Their eyes sparkled with that same kind of roguish spark, and the Darkness Pokémon suddenly remembered why he liked to watch them sometimes, even if they refused to speak to him in anything other than whispered illogical verse.

They were the heart of the caverns: mysterious, secretive, but beautiful and grand.

His arms relaxed, and the worry lines across his forehead slowly disappeared. If the Shuppet were out and about, then that meant that… HE was not down here in the last cavern…

_At least _, Sableye decided warily as the ferocious image of the lavender Ghost- type, crazed and enraged, came into his mind, _HE is not active at the moment… I should have expected that instead of an attack… HE may have been able to Teleport away from the cavern of the crystals, but it was in a moment of blind panic… HE probably didn't know exactly what HE was doing; HE just wanted to get away… So I suppose that it makes more sense for HIM to be hiding down here to rest and recover his vision rather than to attack me when I came back… for HE probably knew I would come back anyway, that I would not leave my master… Yes… HE is down here, cowering in pain in that giant hole in the back wall… _

For a long moment, Sableye stared across the cavern at the pitch black hole in the very center of the back wall that led into Haunter's den. He didn't detect any movement in the darkness, so with a sigh of both frustration and resignation, he looked away.

Instead of the hole, his silver hexagonal eyes took in the fluid patterns of the Shuppet gliding about the airspace of the ceiling. _Yes… If they have come out again, then everything must be back to normal… Life down here is calm and peaceful once more… _

However, Sableye could tell that the cavern would probably bear the scars of the calamity and violence of HIS rampage forever more; the battle with Haunter had certainly taken its toll on the environment. Smashed stalagmites and broken stalactites littered the icy floor, and a few large pieces of stalactite were bobbing up and down gently in the black water. The thin ice that had formerly separated the thicker icy floor and the black water was gone, broken up by ruthless attacks into millions of tiny pieces, which were floating about the water's surface amongst the chunks of stalactite. Even the thickest of the ice had been punctured by hard blasts of Shadow Balls from Haunter's detached hands.

With a sigh, Sableye wondered if he should try to tidy the ice floor up a bit: break up the large chunks of stalactite, sweep the pieces into the water, try to fill in the holes in the thick ice with snow from other caverns which would hopefully freeze over in time. It felt wrong to leave this place, this home of the peaceful and kind Shuppet, in such disrepair, especially seeing as how a great deal of the damage was his own fault.

He walked out farther until he came to the middle of the cavern, then squatted down to rest, realizing that he just didn't have the kind of bustling energy he would need to get to work and effectively clean the last cavern of as much of the battle debris as he could. Perhaps, if he took a nap, or got any kind of sleep, he would gain the energy he needed. Suddenly, Sableye felt himself almost stifle a yawn. It had been a long period of time that he had been awake, so it wasn't particularly unusual for him to be rather tired, also adding on the demanding events of the day.

Slowly, Sableye stood back up, taking one more wary glance at the giant hole in the center of the back wall. There was no movement, which was even more of a relief now that Sableye knew that he was off to take a nap.

And at that moment, by chance, Sableye's head turned just slightly to the right, and he caught sight of the vaguest bit of movement out of the corner of his eye. Instantly, the violet Pokémon whirled around, his body in attack position and his claws at the ready, and an instant later, he relaxed in surprise.

"You…" The word came out of his mouth unbidden. The frowning Shuppet didn't seem to notice his outburst at first. It – no, _she_ – was staring out at the black water and the back of the cavern just as Sableye had been a moment before. Her face was completely emotionless and expressionless, and her eyes, of all things, betrayed no thoughts or feelings. She simply hovered a few feet away to his right at Sableye's shoulder-height.

As he continued to stare at her, wide-eyed and open-mouthed, she slowly turned towards him, her skirt continuing to billow about gently in the air. Her striped eyes gazed into his silver hexagonal eyes, but as Sableye continued to meet her stare, he could sense naught of what she was feeling, thinking… nothing. And yet, as blank as her eyes and her slightly frowning mouth were, Sableye felt there was something beyond that void, hidden deep inside of her. He _knew_ that she was feeling, thinking, knowing…

She had spoken to him, after all; only two words, for sure, but those two words had been serious and intelligent, unlike the nonsensical prattle of her fellow Shuppet. And she had helped to save him and the humans with her Protect technique; she could battle, something that Sableye was sure that the other Shuppet couldn't do. The Protect had been strong and expertly executed as well, stretching across the entire cavern and holding back an enraged, high-level Ghost- type long enough to allow the humans and Sableye time to escape the last cavern before Haunter came back for one last shot.

Sableye had been afraid for her as HE appeared in the cavern of the crystals, not knowing how Haunter had broken through the Protect. As he had made his way back through the caverns, Sableye's mind was a blur of what might have happened. HE could have beat HIMSELF against the wall so many times that it shattered, or Shuppet could have not been able to hold it up for a long time, or, maybe, HE had blasted through with an extra-powerful attack. He was sure that she would be hurt in some way for helping him, but upon seeing her, he realized that she was without a scratch. In fact, she didn't even look tired.

Realizing just how long he had been staring into her eyes, Sableye suddenly broke the silence, stuttering, "I- I- I'm glad to s- see you're all right… Sh- Shuppet… I- I was afraid th- that Haunter h- had h- hurt you…" Her blank expression never once faltered, leaving Sableye's anxious expression to falter by itself.

Suddenly overcome by Shuppet's relentless stare, Sableye felt a warm sensation burning in his stomach and felt his face grow hot. He had seen humans blush, of course, and was sure that, had he had a skin tone lighter than violet, his own cheeks would have been bright pink. Quickly, he looked away and stared at his feet, scuffing the ice uncomfortably with the claws on his left foot. After a moment of mortification, Sableye chanced another glance at her. She was still staring at him, unperturbed.

"W- well, I- I better go now…" he managed to get out. And she blinked: just once, and it didn't really tell him anything. "I'm g- glad y- you're okay, Sh- Shuppet… I- I think I'm going to go rest n- now… I- If you need anything, y- you know where I am, o- of course…" Certainly she knew where he was, Sableye thought in irritation at his own stupidity. There was only one place in this last cavern that he would ever sleep, and he knew that she did stare at him a lot, so she definitely would have seen him go there.

He was hoping that Shuppet would say something again – anything, really. He didn't know why, but he was dying to hear her speak once more. Her voice had been so lovely and elegant, like an angel…

Of course, after seeing the way she was blankly staring at him still, Sableye knew that asking her to speak was quite a ridiculous thing to even think of, much less think of asking her to maybe, if it would not hurt, smile just once…? That was certainly impossible. Nevertheless, Sableye was feeling happy. He had always thought of her as a sort of kindred spirit before, but now, Sableye knew that he certainly had another ally down in these caverns. Perhaps even a friend. So even if she wouldn't talk to him, Sableye knew that he shouldn't complain. Things had changed a bit for the better, after all, and he should be grateful for that.

Realizing that he was staring at her yet again, Sableye quickly muttered a "I- I'll see you…" and turned his head away, his face feeling hot once more. Swiftly, Sableye walked away from her towards the left wall, his silver hexagonal eyes on the icy floor.

Had he turned around, he might have glimpsed the very end of Shuppet's mouth twitch upwards for a moment, before she continued to stare at him as before, blankly and frowning. But, of course, he didn't.

After reaching the left wall and gently laying a paw on it, Sableye glanced over at the back wall once more. The giant hole in the center, Haunter's den, was still dark and motionless, and of course the other Shuppet were still floating about near the ceiling, so Sableye guessed it was not risky to ascend. The claws lying on the wall suddenly sunk into the slick rock, and within a moment, Sableye had climbed halfway up the straight marble-patterned wall.

Before Ash and Misty had appeared in the last cavern, it had always been safe to climb across the side wall, thus avoiding the black water, to get to the other giant holes in the back wall. During their game of false and pretended 'friendship', Haunter hadn't seemed to mind Sableye exploring the other holes, as long as he stayed away from the center one.

Upon seeing that these holes led to good-sized alcoves, Sableye was able to determine that the center hole led to Haunter's den, rather than to another tunnel or cavern beyond even this one. One such hole, near the bottom-left section of the wall, had been just large enough for Sableye to stand up in, so it had become his place of refuge…

Along with the place where the remains of his trainer stayed.

As if he was crawling across a horizontal plane rather than a vertical one, Sableye made his way past the broken shards of stalactite and stalagmite and past the black water filled with cold debris without any trouble. Coming to the back wall, he deftly backed down the wall in reverse until he was level with his own den. He climbed inside, and blinked, trying to adjust his eyes to the dimness of the alcove, even darker than in the rest of this last cavern.

For a small nook of cold marble stone, the place had a sort of homey feeling for Sableye. There was a distinct atmosphere of security here, and the Darkness Pokémon knew just why.

"…Sableye?" The ethereal voice was weak and fragile, as if the one who possessed it could disappear at any moment. The frightening thing was, Sableye was sure that his master's spirit really could do just that. Every time he came to this alcove, Sableye always held his breath, waiting to see if his master was still here or not. Concentrating hard, the violet Pokémon could just make out the pale blue outline of his body. He was sitting down, his back against the right wall, with his knees pulled up to his chest. He had obviously just raised his head from resting it on his crossed arms, which lay up the tops of his knees.

"…Is that you, buddy?" Oh, yes, Sableye thought, a sad smile on his face. He had made the right decision by not going with Max and the others. How could he even think about leaving behind the small bit that was left of his master? Sableye crept forward a few paces on all-fours, nodding. His master's soul was blinking gently, as if his eyesight was no longer any good or he simply didn't trust himself to believe that his first Pokémon, his only Pokémon, was here once more.

Suddenly, his master smiled, though it was not the knowing and clever smile that Sableye had known his master to have before Haunter had separated his master's soul and body. Now, it was more of a reluctant and tired smile. He seemed defeated.

"I'm glad you came back, Sableye," the ghost whispered, extending a gloved hand as Sableye approached him and squatted down next to him. He began to pet the violet Pokémon on the head, knowing that Sableye, being part Ghost- type himself, didn't mind his ethereal touch in the least. In fact, Sableye seemed to relax even more at the petting, especially as his ghostly hand scratched at the special place behind the Darkness Pokémon's ear.

"…But I thought…" the ghost continued, then trailed off. Sableye opened his silver hexagonal eyes, which had been closed in contentment, and stared into his master's eyes. Sableye could remember very clearly what color they had been when his master's spirit had been in his body. They had been the same color as Sableye's.

The ghost gestured with a tilt of his head towards the opening in the wall, which led back out into the last cavern. "…I saw… you were battling, Sableye… I saw… I was watching… you saved those people… you saved them… you stopped HIM…"

Sableye's breath caught in his throat. He hadn't known… he had had no idea that his master had been watching the entire time… So long had his master been out of his body that even his spirit had grown frail and lethargic, so Sableye's trainer was more prone to curl up and stay in a stupor for days on end than to spend any time gazing out at the world of the dim last cavern.

"You did an excellent job against HIM, buddy," the ghost praised, petting Sableye once more. This time, Sableye did not relax, but continued to stare at him in surprise. "You battled so well. I'm very proud of you."

With a tired chuckle, he continued, "You see, Sableye, I told you that you don't need me to tell you what to do in battle!" Seeing his Pokémon's suddenly horrified face, the ghost managed a laugh. "I'm just kidding, buddy; calm down. But…" The ghostly eyes shifted back to the opening in the wall again. "…why didn't you go with them? You and those trainers and their Pokémon worked so well together… surely they would have wanted you to come with them…"

The spirit almost flinched as Sableye's claws suddenly fastened onto the sleeve of his ghostly jacket and a distressed cry erupted from the Pokémon's throat. One look in Sableye's hurt eyes told his trainer all that he needed to know. "Oh, Sableye… I don't want you to go… I really don't… but I don't want you to be unhappy, or think that you have to stay here with me… you are free, Sableye, you really are…"

As another alarmed cry shattered the silence in the alcove, the ghost quickly lower his knees a bit from his chest and patted his leg. Instantly, Sableye was curled up in his trainer's ethereal lap and was leaning his head against his master's ghostly chest. The pale blue arms were around him in a hug a moment later. "I'm so sorry, Sableye… I didn't mean to make you upset… I just meant that, if you want to go, you can…" Savagely, Sableye shook his head before carefully laying it back against his master's chest. The ghost felt himself smile, though it was fragile and sad. "…Thank you, Sableye… thank you more than you'll ever know…"

And the ghost wished, harder than he had in a long time, that his Pokémon was able to hear his master's heartbeat right now, rather than feel nothing but a strange light sensation of ghostly jacket cloth.

With a tired sigh, the ghostly trainer turned his head back towards the opening in the wall. With himself and his Pokémon in silence, he could just hear the whispering swishes of the skirts of the Shuppet near the ceiling in the last cavern. That made him happy. From what he had been able to see, his Sableye had made friends with one of those Shuppet, the one that had helped Sableye out in the battle against HIM. Had he been in his body, he would have wished to catch the Shuppet, so that Sableye would finally have a companion that was a Pokémon, and not just his human trainer. But he wasn't in his body. Haunter had seen to that.

Staring out at the cold floor outside their den, he could see the broken stalactites and stalagmites littering the ice. The fierce battle came into mind. He had been mesmerized by all of the action, realizing that half of the Pokémon he had seen fighting he had even forgotten the name of. That fact had frightened him; he had been away from everything too long. However, the thrill of the battle had shaken him out of his stupor until the humans and Sableye had escaped out of the cavern and out of sight.

But something about that battle was still bothering him.

It wasn't the fact that those two people had returned to their bodies after Haunter had separated them, which he had been unable to do himself. It had probably been within that hour time limit, after all, right? So it wasn't that…

It had been two of the others, and one very much in particular… His eyes weren't as good as they used to be, so he hadn't known if he had dreamed it up out of nowhere.

Sableye had settled into his own sort of trance in his master's lap, so the ghost was careful as he removed his left arm from around his Pokémon's body and slipped his gloved hand into a pocket in his jacket. A moment later, out came the precious item that he had stared at so often since his separation from his body.

The photograph was only a ghostly impression of the real one, still tucked away in the pocket of the jacket on his body, so it was almost hard to make out the pale blue image. To make it worse, the photo had started out shadowy to begin with. It had been taken by his best friend's little brother at Christmastime several years ago. The boy had just gotten a camera as a present and had been anxious to try it out. However, his best friend's little brother had a severe case of bronchitis at the time (which had corrupted his balance), and adding that to the fact that the boy was also just getting used to the glasses that he had to wear… Well, the photo had turned out both horribly crooked and blurry.

But there was something about that picture that he had always loved: it was the way that he and his friend were standing, back to back and arms crossed, but with big grins on their faces. That had certainly been their relationship: fighting one moment, then playing the next. It was also the first photo that had ever been taken of himself wearing his favorite headband, which bared the symbol of a Pokéball on it. His best friend had gotten him the headband for Christmas, knowing how much he loved Pokémon, and he had gotten her a bandana, which she wore in the photo as well. It was quite a special memory to him. The ghostly version of the headband was holding up his hair even now.

The ghost turned his eyes away from the photo to stare back out at the ice. As he had watched the battle through a bit of a haze, two of the trainers had caught his eye, and that one in particular. She had given him a strange feeling, as if he knew… as if he knew… And he had continued to watch, trying to see clearer, but his eyes failed him.

Then, as several Water- type Pokémon had pounded Haunter with their aquatic attacks, he had called out his best friend's name into the cavern, but only one time before realizing that none of them would be able to hear him anyway. He had retreated a bit, though he still watched the battle. He was confused, wondering why he had yelled out like that. Then, after a moment, he had known why her name had escaped his lips.

He thought he had seen…

But no, it couldn't have been. After all, what were the chances?

One in a million?

* * *

And there it is. This is the official end of _Cavern Of A Million Colors_. I want to give a big thank you to everyone who has ever taken (many hours of) their time to read this novel, an even bigger thank you to those who have reviewed, an even bigger thank you to those who have given in-depth reviews and suggestions, and the biggest thank you of them all to my mom, who has been my editor throughout this process.

Obviously, this is not the entire end of the storyline; just the ending of _Cavern_. However, due to time constraints and other various issues, this will be the end of my writing on the plot of _Million Colors_. Hopefully, I will be able to post a lot of extra information on my website, "From The Eevee's Paw" (see my profile page for the address), on _Cavern _and the storyline that would go on afterward.

I will be taking a break of unknown length from _Pokémon_ to write some fan fiction (probably one-shots; definitely not a novel – this is my masterpiece) for other anime universes. If you would be willing to read any of those stories, I humbly ask for your continued support and reviews. I am sad to leave this _Pokémon_ fan base behind, but there are many characters calling me to write for them, and I think I've given Ash and Misty a lot of stage time in this novel. I am also going to be seriously diving into planning my own original series of three novels, and I have a lot of research and work to do on that!

Thank you again, please review, and I hope you enjoyed the story!


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